Michael "Mike" A. Clark's Obituary
CLARK, Michael “Mike” A., age 76, of Waynesville, passed away Thursday, December 23, 2021, at Miami Valley Hospital.
Mike graduated from Waynesville, class of ’63, and attended Wright State University. He was a lifelong farmer and was one of southwest Ohio's more respected and well-known farmers.
He was a graduate of The Ohio State University’s Leadership, Education and Development Program (L.E.A.D.); a member of the Ohio Soybean Council, past president of the Madison County and Warren County Farm Bureaus; and was an active member of the Waynesville Rotary.
Family-oriented, loving, outgoing, trusted, and highly visionary, Mike lived by his quote of “hard work builds character!” He was kind and took pride in offering guidance and a path to a better life to those who fell on tough times. For many years, while his children were growing up and well after they graduated from school, Mike and his wife greatly enjoyed hosting foreign exchange students. They hosted 17 host children who lived with them and many more that visited the farm for educational purposes. Among many personal benefits that he enjoyed by hosting, he enjoyed one of his favorite passions in authentic form, traveling to foreign countries for learning, adventure, and visiting his host kids. His most memorable trips included visits to Brazil, Argentina, China, Singapore, Belgium, Holland, Scotland, Australia, and New Zealand. His other hobbies included reading, socializing with friends, and spending time with family. Christmas was always a special time for Mike, whereby he didn’t care for gifts but insisted on family coming together, almost always with dinner followed by attendance out at a movie.
He was preceded in death by his father, Walter Clark Jr., and his personal friend that he treated like a son, Shane Jackson. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Peggy; three children David Clark, Steve Clark, and Jaime (Sean) Blair; step-grandson Cody Blair (Mara Fernandez); his mother Betty Clark; his sister Beverly Edwards; and many notable exchange host kids, including Pla from Thailand, Sherbanu from India, Lene from Denmark, Turid from Norway, and Pete from Australia.
The family will receive friends 3 - 9 PM Tuesday, December 28 at Stubbs-Conner Funeral Home in Waynesville. A second visitation will be held 9 AM - 11 AM Wednesday, December 29, followed immediately by the funeral service at 11 AM, all at the funeral home. Burial will be in Miami Cemetery, Corwin. Pastor Brian Blankenship will be officiating the services. If desired, contributions may be made to the Shriners Hospital Ohio and/or St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
The funeral service on Wednesday will be streamed live on the internet. Please click on either of the following links to view the live stream: https://vimeo.com/660129671 or https://view.oneroomstreaming.com/authorise.php?k=1640699755800238
Condolences at www.stubbsconner.com.
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