John “Mark” Forbes took either the “Stairway to Heaven” or “Highway to Hell” on October 28, 2026. He passed in his sleep of natural causes. Mark was born on August 16, 1952, to Emmett and Rosemary (Horner) Forbes. He is preceded in death by both parents and one brother, Melvin Forbes. He leaves behind one loving sister, Wanda Deckard (Keith), two daughters, Sarah (Forbes) Kluesner (Jon) and Cynthia Forbes, and two grandchildren, Hunter and Hannah Kluesner. Other than immediate family Mark leaves behind numerous friends as he was described as “one of a kind.” Having been born and raised in Sullivan, Mark spent many years as a farmer before moving to Terre Haute, where was widely known for his karaoke talents. He always loved music, and generally always had it playing. His karaoke catalog had a variety of songs from Prince and Boy George to Meatloaf. His daughters remember long car rides with cassettes and being “forced” to listen to a variety of music. Cynthia has a fond memory of “Wake Up Little Susie” for the sole purpose of her sister, Sarah, hating this song. Mark and her would sing to it whenever it would play to make it more obnoxious and hilarious. Sarah inherited her “Speed Demon” abilities from her dad, resulting in various fines, one that was discovered after Mark was stopped by the same officer within a week. Cynthia took the opposite approach and after giving her dad citations when young (paid with kisses), began working closely with law enforcement as an attorney.

A celebration of life will be held at Holmes Memorial Chapel in Sullivan on Wednesday, November 4th from 4-6 PM. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to support “Save the Music” or “Christmas for Kids Sullivan.” To notify the family of donations, you may email them or include their email address on your donation - SarahKluesner@rocketmail.com.