Clark Marion Bostick

Clark Marion Bostick was born April 18, 1937 in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania to parents Marion A. Bostick and Bertha L. Bostick (Webster). Clark was the firstborn of their union and a loving brother to siblings, George and Rochelle. There was a mere three- and one-half year span between the births of Clark, George, and Rochelle. The three siblings stayed in close contact with each other throughout their lives, frequently communicating and supporting each other.

When Clark was five years old, his mother moved the family to Youngstown, Ohio to live with her mother, Jeannette Walls (Davis). Clark was blessed to receive his early rearing in an extended family home environment, that included his grandmother, step-grandfather, and two young aunts, Betty and Jean. At a young age, Clark was called upon to do a lot of “manly” tasks, such as fixing and lifting things. He seemed to enjoy the role and got really good at being the “go to” guy when it came to repairing household appliances, lighting, plumbing, and automobiles. Local neighbors also benefitted from Clark’s skills, and he willingly helped anyone in need. Clark assumed a parental-like role, not only towards his siblings, but to his young aunts as well.

Clark’s role of accepting increasing responsibility in both his home and neighborhood is where he developed an extraordinary work ethic, sense of responsibility, and interpersonal skill set that would serve him well professionally and personally. A lot was expected from this young gifted boy, and he took great delight in doing a job well while meeting the needs of others. More importantly, home is where Clark learned what a healthy family dynamic looked like.

Clark graduated from high school in 1954 and continued his education with a focus on electronics at various institutions and in garages, where he enjoyed the process of trial and error to arrive at solutions to a project. Prior to moving to California, Clark’s job history was diverse and interesting. His work included appliance and electronics repair, elevator operator at JC Penney, mortuary assistant, handyman extraordinaire at a Jewish temple, and support to the Crippled Children’s Society.

In 1956, Clark married Jewel Steen and together they raised two sons, Randall Clark Bostick and Ronald Anthony Bostick (deceased in 1988). In 1963, while still living in Youngstown, Clark was determined to find a job that utilized his love of electronics to provide a comfortable home for his family. So, while on vacation from a job in Youngstown, he travelled to California to visit his sister, Rochelle, and her family in the city of San Bernardino to search out opportunities. Clark landed a job at General Dynamics (GD) in Pomona very quickly as an hourly employee where over time he consistently advanced in his learning and responsibility. Clark was very happy to move his family, including his mother, to California after becoming employed by GD. During the early period of Clark’s career at GD, he and Jewel co-parented their sons. Over the years, Clark thrived at GD as he led production teams who built many of the U S. Government’s military weapons, including Stinger, Standard Missile, and Phalanx.

He was single for many years until September 19, 1992 when he married the love of his life, Cindy. Clark also lovingly stepped into the role of Dad for Cindy’s daughter, Amber. At the time, Clark and Cindy were employed by GD which became Raytheon Corporation and later learned their jobs would be relocating to another state. In 1994, Clark, Cindy and Amber moved to Tucson, Arizona and it was there, where Clark retired in 1995 as Director of Phalanx Manufacturing. After retiring, Clark established a home business, building and refurbishing computers. He generously shared his talents and his time with others. Family was Clark’s everything, and in 2001, he and Cindy relocated back to California in the High Desert primarily to be closer to his brother, George (deceased), who was living in Victorville at the time.

Clark is survived by Cindy, his wife of almost 27 years; son Randall Bostick; daughter, Amber Anderson (Robert); sister, Rochelle Leonard (Homer); aunt, Betty Daniels; seven grandchildren, Trashawn Goolsby; Shaunie Bostick, Amy Bostick, Shari Bostick, Royce Bostick (Liz), Layken Mosby, and Nalah Anderson. Clark also has 12 great grandchildren, in addition to a host of family and friends who will cherish his memory forever.