Alumni Obituary – Ronald Ray Clark

Ron began his journey in Wichita, Kansas, April 2, 1942 – born to Sarah and Laurence Clark. During his growing up years, the family moved to many different places as Ron’s parents were ministers to rural congregations in Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Kansas. He went to Friends Academy in Haviland, KS for high school and graduated in 1960.

After high school, Ron attended Central Christian College in McPherson, Kansas. He then attended Nazarene Bible College in Colorado Springs, CO before taking a pastoral position with the Friends Church in Hasty, CO in 1981. Then in 1986 Ron went back to Nazarene Bible College and graduated in 1989 with a diploma in Biblical Studies. He then returned to Nazarene Bible College and graduated in 1998 with a Bachelors Degree.

After receiving his diploma in Biblical Studies Ron and his wife Letha took their first assignment at a Nazarene church in Eastern Colorado at a little town called Karval, where they would spend the next 22 years leading that congregation. They retired in 2010.  In the fall of 2019, the severity of Ron’s dementia became severe enough that it was time to make the disheartening decision to place him in a Nursing Home, where he remained until his final departure.

Ron was preceded in death by – his mother and father, his brother Laurence, sister Jueene Zortman and husband Ed, sister Donna Hadley, and husband Curtis.

He is survived by his wife Letha, children and their spouses: Rhonda and Glen Birt, Robert and Shaun Clark, Rebecca and Edwin Samples, Rachael and Conrad Tombleson; stepchildren: Curtiss Holmes, Kevin and Lisa Holmes, and Kent and Hope Holmes; seventeen grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and many friends.

Ron was a kind and generous person. He touched the hearts of many. He will be missed deeply as we await the day we will be reunited on heavens celestial shore.

ABOUT CENTRAL CHRISTIAN COLLEGE OF KANSAS

Central Christian College of Kansas is a four-year collegiate institution that strives to offer Christ-centered education for the whole person through four core characteristics: heart, soul, mind, and strength. Its history dates back to 1884, and it is located in the friendly town of McPherson, Kansas. Central is a strategically small college that offers over forty areas of residential study and a thriving online program for non-traditional students. To learn more about Central, go to centralchristian.edu/about. Visit the Foundation of Central Christian College to see what projects and events are coming up.