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Sheldon Oakley Clark

Posted 2008-04-20 by Pat Wilson
The Arizona Republic, Phoenix, Arizona
January 30, 2005

Sheldon Oakley Clark, loving husband and father, devoted educator and mentor, avid outdoor sportsman, military history aficionado and patriotic veteran, passed from this life to the next on Thursday, January 13, 2005. Born in Mattoon, Illinois, on May 15, 1927 to Golda OAKLEY and Sheldon C. CLARK, he moved to Phoenix in 1937.

Sheldon was a 1945 graduate of Phoenix Union High School. While in high school he was a member of the JrROTC and marksmanship team. It was during this time that he developed his life long passion for shooting sports.

Immediately following graduation he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force serving as a weather observer at various bases in the U.S. and in the South Pacific.

Sheldon returned to Phoenix to attend Arizona State College (ASU) where he received his undergraduate degree in elementary education in 1951. After graduation he began a 46 year career with the Creighton Elementary School District. He taught at Lafayette (now Kennedy) school until 1957, during which time he received his Masters in Education, also from ASC. In 1957 he was promoted to Assistant Principal. In 1965 he transferred in the same position to Creighton School. In 1967 he became Principal of Monte Vista School, serving until his initial retirement in 1987.

Following his retirement, he joined the District administrative staff as Evaluation Systems Facilitator for the Career Ladder program, a position he held until 1997. During his career as an educator, Sheldon also filled numerous mentoring roles for children, including Little League and girls' softball coach, Scoutmaster and District Commissioner, and Girl Scout supporter.

One of his favorite mentorship activities was that of Hunter Safety Instructor through which he trained hundreds of Valley youth in safe hunting and shooting sports. He was a lifetime member of NRA. Sheldon was active in numerous professional and community endeavors including President of the Elementary Section of the Arizona School Administrators Association, Trustee of First Congregational UCC Church, and founding member and President of the Phoenix Sundown Rotary Club.

As a lover of reading and military history, he was a freelance book reviewer for the Arizona Republic, and the author of several articles on Arizona history. He really enjoyed hiking and camping in the Arizona backcountry.

He is survived by his loving wife Fran CLARK; brother Ralph T. (Mary Mae) Bryan; sons W. Mark (Stacy) CLARK of Tucson, Jeff (Jackie) CLARK, Christopher (Carol) CLARK; daughter Nancy (Bruce) STEELE of Altadena, CA; stepdaughters Kelly Jo and Laura ZAHTILA of Calistoga, CA; 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

He was an incredibly kind, generous and loving man who will be deeply missed by all whose lives he touched.

A memorial service was held at Paradise Valley United Methodist Church, 4455 East Lincoln Dr.

The family suggests contributions in Sheldon's name to the Nature Conservancy - Arizona Chapter, 7500 N. Dreamy Draw Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85020.


See Also: ASU Memoriams




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