Meet Mark
Mark Sigrist is running for another term in the Ohio House of Representatives to continue putting his problem-solving skills and experience to work for the people of his community. Drawing on his leadership on Grove City Council and his experience as an executive at Honda, Mark is committed to delivering results and continuing the work he began in the Ohio House.
Mark’s Bio
Representative Mark Sigrist is serving his first term in the Ohio House of Representatives, representing House District 10, which includes Grove City, German Village, the Columbus Greater Hilltop Area, Urbancrest, Lockbourne, and the surrounding townships on Central Ohio’s southwest side. Before joining the Statehouse, Mark served as an at-large member of the Grove City Council from 2022 to 2024.
Before entering public service, Mark enjoyed a long and fulfilling career with Honda North America, where he worked in accounting, strategic planning, expatriate management, and information systems. Early in his career, he and his family moved to Japan to help establish Honda’s first expatriate program for North American associates and their families.
He often describes that experience as the most transformative of his life:
“I was able to work with amazing talent from all corners of the world in a team-first environment. The Japanese influence of deep problem solving, root cause analysis, consensus building, and teamwork had a profound impact on who I am today.”
Mark and his family were forever shaped by their years in Japan, where their sons attended Japanese preschool, their daughter was born, and where they immersed themselves in the culture and language. He credits those years with strengthening his respect for diversity, collaboration, and lifelong learning.
After retiring from Honda, Mark returned home to Grove City, where he lives with his wife. They are the proud parents of three grown children, all of whom are married and beginning families of their own. He quickly re-engaged in community life, volunteering and evolving the annual Thanksgiving Day Community Fundraising Event, which he founded in 2012. It now includes a 5K, a children’s fun run, a race for athletes with differing abilities, and a 10-mile bike ride. Beginning in 2025, Mark entrusted the event’s operations to a group of close friends in Grove City. Now celebrating its 14th year, with over 2,000 participants annually, the event has become a cherished local tradition that benefits a local food pantry and the families it serves.
A proud graduate of Ohio University, Mark earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting and passed the CPA exam.
When he’s not at the Statehouse, you’ll likely find Mark outdoors — running, playing pickleball, or chatting with neighbors. His favorite television series of the past decade is Ted Lasso, whose optimism and curiosity he strives to emulate in his daily work and leadership.
Mark’s Story
Mark Sigrist's three most influential people have been his wife, Melissa, and his late parents, Gary and June. They greatly influenced his values —family, hard work, and giving back to the community and those less fortunate.
After graduating from Grove City High School, he went to college and graduated from Ohio University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. There, he met his wife, Melissa. They have been married for 40 years and celebrated their anniversary this summer. Mark and Melissa have three adult children, all married and living in Central Ohio.
He had a long career at Honda in Marysville, Ohio. One of the most life-shaping events in raising their family was moving to Japan to work for Honda. In the early 90’s, he was the first associate assigned to a brand-new expatriate program. His role was to set up a program in Japan for Honda U.S. engineers and their families. He and his family, two children, then moved to Japan and lived there for three years. His daughter was born in Tokyo during the 3-year assignment.
Mark moved back to Grove City in 2017, where his siblings and their families resided. He was not going to rest in retirement. He continued to evolve a Thanksgiving Day Community Food Pantry Fundraiser 5K that he founded in 2012, a cherished event that attracts over 2,000 people and raises $30,000 annually for the local food pantry. In 2018, he accepted the mayor’s assignment to the Keep Grove City Beautiful Committee Board and actively volunteered in the Grove City Buddy Ball Baseball Program.
Mark’s Career
At Honda, Sigrist was known as a pragmatic manager with a can-do attitude who could get the job done. During most of his 33-year career with the international automaker, he met regularly with the president of Honda North America in its Marysville, Ohio, headquarters. He calls his work experience “Honda University.” It was a rigid 33-year course in a quest for continuous improvement. The curriculum was filled with consensus building, problem-solving, root cause analysis, and team decision-making.
As a young man, Sigrist learned the value of hard work. While attending Grove City High School, Sigrist helped his father, Gary, in the family business - Hall of Frame, a photography studio on Broadway in downtown Grove City. He also was a busboy at Beulah Park and Scioto Downs. He was a Horsemen’s bookkeeper at Scioto Downs.
Sigrist worked through college at Ohio University as a dormitory resident assistant. Demonstrating his entrepreneurial spirit, he sold fellow dorm students ham and cheese sandwiches and soda pop out of his dorm room. “I’d buy the fixings and put the sandwiches together,” Sigrist remembers. “I sold a lot of them. Somebody in the dorm was always hungry.”
In The News
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The Columbus Dispatch: Everyday Hero
“Everyday Heroes: Mark Sigrist downplays his outreach efforts, calls himself a 'connector'
Mark Sigrist has used his energy and organizational skills to start a 5K for charity and worked to include and boost those with special needs.”
Story by: Ken Gordon
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City Scene: Grove City Twins Offer Community Help During Pandemic
“Mark Sigrist, Mary Mulvany jumpstart efforts to assist local residents and food pantry.
Story by: Lydia Freudenberg
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The Columbus Dispatch: Grove City Strangers Rally Around Young Man Who Changed Their Lives
He showed them kindness. Now strangers are rallying around sanitation worker
Story by: Theodore Decker
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The Columbus Dispatch: Pandemic has Brought Greater Need for Grove City Food Pantry
In the time of COVID-19, the community's need for the services provided by the Grove City Food Pantry has grown.
At the same time, the food pantry has faced its own pandemic-related challenges.
Story by: Alan Froman
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Newton Bee: Twenty-Six Benches Provide Rest And Reflection
“Mr. Sigrist was one of the earliest people to contact the town with an offer of providing a memorial, said Parks and Recreation Director Amy Mangold, and one of the most persistent, even as town officials struggled to sort through an unexpected deluge of similar offers. His idea was for 26 benches, each with a plaque personalized by the families of the 26 victims of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, December 14, 2012.”
Story by: Nancy K. Crevier