Mark Regni, the late general manager of the Potsdam Food Co-Op.

Facebook photo used with courtesy

BY ADAM ATKINSONNorth Country This Week

POTSDAM — The general manager of the Potsdam Food Co-op has died.

Mark Regni, who was hired on as the general manager for the local membership grocery and food store last fall, succumbed to cancer Wednesday, Jan. 24, said a message to the Co-Op membership from the organization’s board of directors.

“In December, Mark thought he strained his back. While assessing the back pain, metastatic cancer was found in his spine,” the board said. “After staying awhile in the Potsdam hospital, Mark was transferred to Albany where further testing found that the cancer had spread throughout his body. On Tuesday, they were transferring him to hospice care and on Wednesday morning, he passed away. Although a rapid decline is hard to process, his family appreciates that he did not have to suffer.”
The board said in the message that they and the Co-op staff will need time to develop a plan to move forward with management of the Co-op.

“Please be patient with the Staff and the Board as we navigate through this challenging time. As updates are available we will send them out. Everyone’s goal is to have a successful Food Co-op here in Potsdam and we do need some time to determine the best path forward,” the board said.

Regni had moved to Potsdam from Florida in October “excited to not only manage the Potsdam Food Co-op but to work on the DRI expansion project” the message to the membership said.

According to the board, Regni began working in the grocery industry in the 1970s. He had opened, managed and ran several stores across the country.
He was an accomplished artist and painter, and had studied at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts School and the California Institute of the Arts, Disney School of Animation.

Regni is survived by his sister Lynne, twin sister Kim, and daughter Jessica.