Help Mark Fight Cancer

Dear Friends, We are reaching out today to share the heartbreaking news about our friend, brother, son, and much more, Mark S. Steinberg. On May 31st, Mark went to the emergency room with mild back pain and a fever. His CT scans revealed multiple masses in his abdominal cavity that appeared to be malignant tumors. The 23-year-old Essex County Sheriff’s Officer and soon-to-be-sworn-in Verona Police Officer was unexpectedly diagnosed with Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumors (DSRCT), an extremely rare form of sarcoma cancer. In under two weeks, Mark already began aggressive high dose chemotherapy and faces an arduous path of treatment and healing.

From an early age, Mark has dreamed of being a police officer and overall public servant. Since becoming an EMT at sixteen, Mark has answered over 1000 calls of service as a volunteer for the Verona Rescue Squad (Verona, NJ) and Beach Haven First Aid Squad (Long Beach Island, NJ) and as a paid EMT with the Jenkinson’s Beach Patrol (Point Pleasant, NJ). He also serves as a Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator for the township of Verona and, most recently, was inducted as an Entered Apprentice Freemason at F&AM Lodge #11.

Mark’s kindness, care, compassion, thoughtfulness, and superb emergency medical skills are all hallmarks of his tireless devotion to helping others. In every way, Mark embodies the idea of “Service before self.”

At 22 years old, Mark was hired by the Essex County Sheriff’s Office while completing his undergraduate degree at Rutgers University’s School of Public Administration. He graduated from the Essex County Police Academy in November 2022, and, in addition, received his B.A. in Public and Non-Profit Administration with the highest honors and became an NJ Certified Emergency Manager. He then immediately began serving the Essex County community. His commitment to excellence, honor, and integrity has allowed him to excel as a caring and community-minded public servant. Mark’s PBA family is praying for him and has pledged to do all we can to support and encourage his recovery and return to serving his community. 

Mark is extremely family-focused and was raised with his older brother, Matthew, by his widowed mother who continuously works two jobs to make ends meet. Mark lost his father to brain cancer when he was five years old. His diagnosis is devastating to the family after having experienced the loss of many family members to cancer.

Due to the rarity of his diagnosis, Mark needs to visit numerous oncologists at different hospitals across the New Jersey and New York Area and possibly the country. Mark’s treatment is expected to take more than a year, during which unanticipated expenses relating to his medical care will not be fully covered by insurance.

We hope to lessen Mark’s burden and allow him and his family to concentrate their energies on what is most important: staying positive and conquering his cancer so he can return to a normal sense of life and continue to serve the communities that he loves and ultimately survive to live a happy life with his family, friends, and girlfriend.

This cause is supported by the Essex County Sheriff's Office PBA Local 183, Verona Police PBA Local 72, Essex County PBA Conference, and the Verona Rescue Squad. The GoFundMe has been created to assist Mark and his family to mitigate any unforeseen financial burdens and ease the stress from fighting this cancer.

Please help Mark in any way you can whether that is keeping Mark in your prayers, gifting a donation, or sharing his story with others. Your generosity, support, and encouragement can help him overcome this challenge. Many thanks from Mark’s family and friends - and the Police, EMS, Fire, and OEM professionals who love and respect him.