Information

Mark Gardner will be long remembered as a former police officer and attorney, a devoted husband and father, a hero and role model to his three children, and an admired member of his community. He was also a prominent supporter of every program, sport, and extracurricular activity his kids participated in, including Speech & Debate, in which he volunteered as a judge and assisted Olympian High School in hosting its first major tournament during the 2023-24 school year.

Mark's unexpected passing on January 26, 2023 has left not only his school but our entire debate league in mourning. Olympian High School is honored to invite all member schools of the SDIVSL to join us for a free Parliamentary and Public Forum debate tournament on February 17th. We hope that the Mark Gardner Invitational tournament at Olympian High School will become an annual tradition to honor the legacy of Mark Gardner and continue what he helped to start. We invite you to be a part of it.

The tournament will be held at:

Olympian High School

1925 Magdalena Avenue

Eastlake CA 91913

Teams are asked to check-in at 7:15 for the first round, beginning at 8 a.m.

Food and drink will be provided for all judges.

Concessions will be sold to competitors, with all proceeds going directly to the Gardner family.