Helen Manley Clark
Helen Manley Clark went to be with the Lord on March 24, 2021 in Ooltewah, Tennessee.
Helen was born in Webster City, Iowa on October 17, 1922. She was the fourth of six children born to Chester and Alta Manley. She moved to Missouri and then to Omaha, Nebraska where she spent most of her childhood years.
During World War II she became a “Rosie the Riveter” for B-25 aircraft. On May 23, 1945 she married Charles Clark, Jr. at First United Methodist Church in Omaha, Nebraska. At the time of their marriage, he was serving in the U.S. Army at Fort Crook, Nebraska. They were transferred to Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina, and then to Fort Bragg, North Carolina until the end of the World War II. They spent their married life in Connecticut, New Jersey and the 46 years in Upstate New York where they raised four children.
She was very active in St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in New Hartford, New York serving as the chairperson of numerous committees and leading restoration efforts for it to become a historical landmark. She also volunteered weekly at the Grace Church soup kitchen.
She was an avid bowler, winning many tournaments and took up golf in her later years. To be near family, she moved to South Carolina in 2005 following the death of her husband in 2004, and then to Spencer, Tennessee in 2016. She attended Mt. Crest United Methodist Church until she moved to an assisted living facility in Ooltewah.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Chester and Alta Manley; her five siblings; husband, Charles Clark, Jr.; and son-in-law Michael DeHooge.
She is survived by her four children, David (Zoe) Clark of Fairfield Glade, Thomas (Fran) Clark of Spencer, Steven (Linda) Clark of Newport, New York, and Pamela DeHooge of Ooletwah; six grandchildren, Brian (Julie Wilson) Clark, Robert (Ann) Clark, Janel (Darryl) Faxon, and Matthew, Ryan and Zachary DeHooge; and five great-grandchildren, Aidan Clark, Kaitlyn Clark, Brooke Clark, Kaylee Faxon and Keegan Faxon.
She will be laid to rest with her husband at the National Cemetery in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
A Celebration of Life service is being held at Mt. Crest United Methodist Church on April 17 at 11:00 a.m.
