Gerald Elton Clarke

Gerald Elton Clarke, 79, of Germantown, TN, passed away peacefully on February 27, 2019. A loving husband, father, and grandfather, he was a hero to all of his family. A memorial service celebrating his life will be held at the Village at Germantown, 7820 Walking Horse Circle, Germantown, TN on Saturday, March 23, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. Gerald E. Clarke was born on May 3, 1939, in Niagara Falls, N.Y. He is survived by his loving wife of 54 years, Diane Schoonover Clarke. He is survived by his son, James Clarke (Tracey) of Greensboro, N.C.; son Stephen Clarke (Rachel) of Bellaire, Texas; daughter Kathryn Clarke Danby (Scott) of Houston, Texas; and his grandchildren Sydney Clarke, David Clarke, Allison Clarke, Ashley Clarke, and Lauren Clarke. He is survived by his sister, Jane Clarke Teffar of Skaneateles, N.Y. He was preceded in death by his parents, Elton and Ruth Clarke of Manchester, N.H. Mr. Clarke was a 1961 chemical engineering graduate of Syracuse University, and earned an MBA at the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1971. He worked his entire career at Occidental Chemical, retiring in 1997. He held various technical and managerial positions, including manager of the Heavy Chemicals Department and manager of the chlor-alkali expansion project at the Niagara Falls plant, manager of the expansion and modernization of the Tacoma, Washington plant, Plant Manager of the Dallas, Texas plant, and Plant Manager of the Muscle Shoals, Alabama facility. His prize accomplishment during his Muscle Shoals tenure was the employees receiving the OSHA Star Award for excellence in safety. It is a testament to his leadership philosophy and character that he insisted the previous sentence be worded so that it was his employees who received recognition for that achievement, not him. He was active in many community endeavors including the United Way and the Board of Directors of the Shoals Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Clarke loved to sing and was a loyal member of the choirs at First Presbyterian Church of Lewiston, NY, First United Methodist Church of Florence, AL and the Village at Germantown, TN. He was an avid model railroader, creating complex HO scale layouts of the Kathryn Valley Railroad in each of his homes around the country. He especially enjoyed his friends at the Shoals Model Railroad Club. His greatest joy was his family, particularly his five grandchildren of whom he was immensely proud. He loved to travel the world with his wife, Diane, especially his trips to Scotland, Normandy, and Germany. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his honor to The Parkinson’s Foundation, www.parkinson.org, 200 SE 1st Street, Suite 800, Miami, FL, 33131.