Billy Clark

In his 92 years, Billy Clark’s proudest achievement was fathering, grandfathering,
and finally great-grandfathering a loving and close-knit family. He taught us to love
and respect our earth, our country, our communities, each other, and most of all,
our Creator and Savior. We already miss him very much.

In the 1920s Clark Farms was established by Billy’s grandfather George Washington
Clark in the Harris Station neighborhood of Obion County. Billy was born to Vester and
Lottie Bell Hester Clark in their home in 1927. In 1936, Vester and Lottie moved to
Tom Counce Road, which became the new farm headquarters. The land in Harris
Station was eventually sold.

Billy graduated from South Fulton High School and began to farm with his dad,
after a brief service with the US Navy. He took the business from 20-30 pigs to
a 500 head hog operation that continued into the late 1970’s. Crops grown on
the farm at that time included wheat, corn, milo, tobacco, and cotton.

He married Marion Yates, daughter of Tubb Yates, a local dairy farmer, in 1947.
She worked on the farm and at Ferry Morse Seed Company. Together they raised
2 sons, David and Gary.

Billy’s brother Hester went to Detroit to work for the Dodge Motor Company at the
age of 18, until he was drafted for World War II a few years later. Hester was killed
in action and was awarded a Silver Star. He is buried in the North African American
Cemetery in Tunisia.

Billy was also preceded in death by his dear sister Maudie Bell Bennett.

Billy’s older son David married his college sweetheart Jean Parker of Mayfield, KY.
They gave him two granddaughters, Jill and Emily. David worked in partnership with
his dad on the farm through his career. Jill is married to Phil Lowry of Salt Lake City,
Utah, and is stepmother to his eight children and is a colorectal surgeon. Emily is
married to Clint Workman of Obion County, and the two of them have continued the
family farm operation as their careers. Emily and Clint gave Billy 2 great-grandsons,
Grayson and Rhett.

Billy’s younger son Gary entered the U.S. Navy for his career and married Sandy
Morgan. They gave Billy a grandson, Jesse Lee. Jesse Lee married and gave Billy
four great-grandchildren, but himself suffered an untimely early death from heart
complications earlier this year. Jesse was enlisted in the US Army. Sandy has also
passed. Gary is remarried to Delia Garciano of the Philippines, and they are now
retired to Dover, TN, as well as the Philippines.

In 1974, before his eldest grandchild Jill was born, Billy lost Marion to a terrible
battle with melanoma. This tipped him into a severe depression that troubled him
to varying degrees for the remainder of his life.

In 1975, Billy remarried Travene Caudle, widow of the late A.B. Caudle, both from
Obion County. This marriage added Travene’s children Patricia and Terry to the family.
Patricia and her husband Jim provided 2 grandsons Cayce and Jay. Terry
and his wife Glenda provided 1 grandson Blake and 4 granddaughters, Brandy,
Laney, D.J., and Jamie. These grandchildren have provided Billy with 3 great
granddaughters and one great grandson. He was preceded in death by Travene
who suffered with worsening dementia for many years before her passing in 2005.
He was also preceded in death by Patricia and Jim.

In 2008, Billy remarried Eva Moreland, widow of the late Pastor Jimmy Moreland.
They have lovingly shared this last 11 years. He is also survived by Eva’s 4 children,
their spouses, and many grandchildren, and great grandchildren.

In addition to farming and growing his family, Billy whole heartedly enjoyed fishing,
hunting, and sharing meals and cardplaying with his friends. He was a Gideon and
a lifetime member of the Fulton Cumberland Presbyterian Church in South Fulton
where he sang in the choir. He is a founding member of the College of Knowledge,
an elite group of local, mostly retired, thinkers and talkers. For the last few years
he has provided translation services to other members who have varying degrees
of failed hearing and enunciation.

It is Billy’s expressed wish that his funeral be short and to the point. People really
need to get back to their families and work, after all. Visitation will be at the Hornbeak
Funeral Chapel on Saturday 10/12/19 from 4-6 pm. A second visitation will be at the
Fulton Cumberland Presbyterian Church in South Fulton on Sunday 10/13/19 at 1 pm.
Funeral services will follow at 2 pm. He will be buried at the Obion County Memorial
Gardens alongside Marion Yates Clark. Pall bearers include John Alexander, Blake
Caudle, Clint Workman, Paul Moreland, Randy Moreland and Cecil Wolberton.
Honorary pall bearers include Kent Hutchins, Jim Paitsel, Terry Caudle, James
Threlkeld, Dr. John Ragsdale, Tim Tanner, and Michael Rogers.

Billy will be honored by your company anytime or by your memorial donation
to Gideons International, P.O. BOX 1325, Fulton, KY 42041 as you are able.
Above all, he will be honored by your ongoing loving attention to each other.

Billy would probably agree with the ecclesiatical King Solomon that life is full of vanity
and chasing after the wind, but there are sparks of hope and meaning throughout.
We are best when we arise every morning, deciding to love and to forgive, to cultivate
curiosity, gratitude, and kindness.

“Believe that enough is a feast. Be of service and generous; try to escape the prison
of self. Know that your death is real and coming at blinding speed, so stop struggling
to hold onto the intrinsically ephemeral and let go, relax, and remember to have fun,”
unknown author, published in The Los Angeles Times from Mar. 1 to Mar. 3, 2019
For the more detailed and Biblical version of this quote, you may reference the book of Ecclesiastes.