Charlie Clark

In the fields where he grew, under wide-open skies,

Charley Clark rode to school, where the prairie winds sighed.

From Kansas to Colorado, New Mexico’s embrace,

Missouri called him home, in its gentle, warm grace.

With a heart full of music, and hands skilled with strings,

His harmonica’s whisper, his fiddle’s sweet ring.

In the family band, from the tender age of ten,

His melodies lingered, like a dear, cherished friend.

He wed Lenora Ellen, a love pure and true,

Their journey together, painted skies a bright hue.

Through agrarian lands, his footsteps did tread,

From banking to brokering, where his wisdom was spread.

A Marine with valor, in duty he stood,

Serving his country, as every brave soul would.

At First Baptist Church, his faith was his guide,

A Deacon, a teacher, with love shining wide.

With “For Heaven’s Sake,” in the gospel he found,

A harmony sacred, a spiritually bound.

Pleasant Hill Country Church, his most recent abode,

Where stories of faith and service are told.

His daughters, dear Carrie and Charla, stood near,

In the light of his love, so constant and clear.

Their children, his joy, in their eyes he did see,

A reflection of Lenora, in sweet legacy.

His legacy lives in the hearts that he touched,

Daughters, and grandchildren, who loved him so much.

Great-grandsons Maxwell and Archer will hear,

Of the man whose love echoes, ever sincere.

Though Lenora preceded, his soul intertwined,

With hers in the heavens, where stars brightly shine.

Now reunited, they dance in the night,

Two spirits in harmony, bathed in holy light.

Charley Clark, your music remains in the breeze,

Your love in each whisper of the tall swaying trees.

A pillar of strength, in the community’s heart,

Your legacy lives, never to depart.