William Thompson (Tom) Clark passed away on September 8, 2024 after a long struggle with Alzheimer's.  He was born on January 1, 1935, in Statesville, NC to Phyllis and Herman Clark.  Tom earned a B.S. degree in Business Administration in 1957 from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill.  Tom remained a fervent fan of Tarheels basketball and football for the rest of his life.

During Tom's senior year in high school he met the love of his life, Joyce Lowe, of Hampton, Virginia.  After a long courtship they were married on June 8, 1957.

Tom was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force upon graduation from college.  His first assignment was a 1-year tour in Diyarbakir, Turkey.  This was an "unaccompanied post"  - not ideal for a newly married couple – but necessary given the proximity to the border with the Soviet Union.

Upon returning to the United States, Tom's next post was at Sewart Air Force Base in Smyrna, Tennessee.   This small town just outside Nashville is where Tom and Joyce spent the next 13 years and started their family. Their daughter Robin was born in 1960 and their son Scott in 1963.

After completing his Air Force assignment, Tom joined the General Electric Company in nearby Murfreesboro, Tennessee.  In 1972 he transferred to Morrison, Illinois as the manager of Shop Operations and later the manager of Quality Control.  In 1982 he was promoted to plant manager of a GE plant in Reynosa, Mexico.  The family lived in Mission, Texas and Tom traveled to Reynosa each day.

In 1984 Tom was promoted to general manager of the Springfield, Missouri GE plant. Tom and Joyce said goodbye to Texas but were excited about their move to Missouri. Tom later received a promotion overseeing three plant locations: Tell, City, Indiana, Reynosa, Mexico and Springfield, Missouri.

Throughout his life, Tom was very active in the Methodist church. He served as chairman of most committees, lay leader, president of Methodist Men, youth counselor, Sunday school teacher, and chairman of many financial drives.  He served in leadership roles for many organizations, including Council of Churches of the Ozarks, Rotary Club, and United Way and was on the board of directors of the Breech School of Business Administration at Drury University.

Tom retired in 1993 after 32 years with General Electric, allowing he and Joyce to spend even more time boating on Table Rock Lake and travelling to all 50 states and all seven continents. He also loved to build furniture, including a roll top desk, end tables, bookshelves, and other items.

Tom is remembered by those who knew him as a very kind and generous person who would go out of his way to help others. His faith was important to him, and he lived a life of service to others in keeping with the teachings of our Lord.

Tom is survived by his loving wife of 67 years, Joyce, his daughter Robin (Julie) of Austin, Texas and his son Scott (Lesley) of Concord, New Hampshire.  Also surviving are his sister-in-law Pat Clark of Davidson, North Carolina and his brother-in-law Steve Lowe (Daria) of Heathsville, Virginia, his niece Alex (Devin) Welch and their children (Sagan and Jette) of Charlottesville, Virginia and his nephew Hunter Lowe of Ashburn, Virginia.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial contributions be made to King's Way United Methodist Church or Crosslines.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at King's Way United Methodist Church in Springfield, MO on Saturday, September 21 at 11:00am. Online condolences can be left at gormanscharpf.com