About

(revised 11.12.2024)

AmericanDelusions contains occasional work by Mark Orton.

Mark Orton graduated from The Taft School ‘65 (Watertown, CT) and holds degrees in Russian Language and Literature and Manufacturing Engineering from Lawrence University ‘69 and Wentworth Institute of Technology ‘77 respectively. He has also done graduate work at Cornell University in linguistics and Harvard Extension School in business management.

Mark’s work history includes the following positions: machinist, r&d machinist, mechanical designer, r&d engineer, numerous management positions in manufacturing including plant manager, VP Inside Sales and Custom Engineering, VP Marketing. He also worked for a quasi public consulting firm (New England Supplier Institute) providing lean manufacturing consulting support to manufacturers throughout New England. In 1999 he started a software company, Valuedge, Inc., with a partner, Sherry Gordon. This company was funded by Boeing and later sold. The products continue to be offered by IBM in their suite of ERP tools. In recent years Mark has continued to consult to the owners and CEOs of small companies. For the last five years Mark has been involved with a start up software company in Hudson, NY, UThisMe, llc. (YouThisMe.com) which has morphed into the healthcare-centric UTMHealthcare, llc (UTMHealthcare.com). Mark is winding down his consulting business with final exit at the end of 2025.

Since moving to Hudson NY in 2009 Mark has been very involved with the Hudson Area Library. Below is my 2012 headshot for my time as a Trustee of Hudson Area Library (2009 – 2016 & 2018 – 2024; President 2011 – 2016 & 2019 – 2022).

In the spring of 2024, Mark and his wife Karen Davis moved to West Palm Beach, FL, after a 15-year spell in Hudson, NY. Life moves on……

This is a photo of Mark in 2003 at a 5K road race. You can be sure that he was near the back of the slow pack. 5/24/2013 – I must note that after a tennis injury last summer, a trip to an orthopod led to the conclusion that my knees were wearing out. I am now limiting my running to just tennis. Walking and bikes only for aerobics, otherwise. My last 5K was the Hudson Area Library Ghostly Gallop in 2012. I remain an active tennis player. Doubles weekly for several hours, a tennis lesson also weekly, and as many singles rally hours as I can squeeze in.