| Mark Flynn is a long-time castler
from Northwest Florida’s gulf coast. He has fiddled with sandcastles
since childhood, but says he really got a lot of practice as a 19
year-old lifeguard at a very quiet beach. Up until 1999, Mark entered
the occasional local contest, never stepping beyond castles, although
these did become more elaborate.
The prize for winning one local contest
(with the help of his wife, Shannon) was a weekend at Seaside, FL.
While enjoying that prize, Mark wandered down to the beach, as castlers
and carvers are apt to do, and was fascinated by a visitor from
Atlanta carving four people sitting in a hot tub. The light went
on: there is more to carving than castles…people, animals,
sea life, monsters, dragons…
1999 saw Mark’s first entry at
a master’s level contest in St. Petersburg, Florida. The experience
was enlightening, and he wasn’t last. Other trips for master’s
contests have included Texas, South Carolina, Washington, and British
Columbia. His proudest result was the 2002 “Judge’s
Favorite” trophy at Seal Beach, CA, where he headed up a small
team of USC students, including his son Michael. Mark was invited
back to Seal Beach in 2003 to work on their special Medieval
Castle project.
Up until his retirement in April 2003,
Mark worked for the Air Force as a guidance counselor and human
resource specialist. Sand carving was more of a hobby, carving an
occasional piece for a wedding, special event, or party, plus as
many contests as he could reach. In the summer of 2002, he took
a couple of weeks off from the Air Force to work on a large commercial
project in Belgium, one of forty carvers presenting the history
and architecture of ancient Egypt. In 2003 he returned to Belgium
to help create their depiction of the history of South America.
Details and pictures from both of these projects can be seen at
www.sculpta.be.
These days Mark can be found on the
Gulf of Mexico beach near his home in south Walton County, FL. He
and Shannon have two sons and three grandsons, with whom he enjoys
sharing his love of sand carving.
Contact
Sand Odyssey:
m.flynn@mchsi.com
86
Crescent Rd
Santa Rosa
Beach, FL 32459
850.622.2741
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