Richard A. 'Dick' Clark

Richard 'Dick' Clark, 57, beloved husband of Sharon (nee Jones), devoted father of Bryan Kyle (Leslie) Clark, dear son of Donald L. and the late Ethel Clark, brother of Robert (Teri) Clark and Moris (Lori) Cabezas, loving grandpa of Jackson Jones Clark, passed away September 7, 2011 with his family at his side.

Dick was born on December 25, 1953 in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. He and his family lived in Plainfield, Wisconsin, Menomonie, Wisconsin, Janesville, Wisconsin, and Columbus, Ohio before settling in Bryan, Texas in 1967. Dick graduated from Bryan High School in 1972 and enrolled at Texas A&M University. At A&M, Dick was in the Corps of Cadets and marched in the Fightin Texas Aggie Band, playing the trombone and serving on the Bugle Rank his senior year. He graduated from A&M in 1976 with a degree in industrial engineering, and later earned his MBA from Xavier University. Dick remained a dedicated Former Student and a huge Aggie fan for the rest of his life.

Dick met his wife Sharon in the youth choir at First United Methodist Church in Bryan in 1970. They have been together ever since. The couple was married on January 3, 1976 and celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary earlier this year. Through the years, the couple enjoyed global travel, cruises with friends, spending time with family, and raising their son Bryan, who was born in 1983.

After graduating from A&M, Dick went to work for Procter & Gamble as a manager in a packaging plant in St. Louis, Missouri. He was transferred to Cincinnati in 1986 and took on a planning position in the Cascade division. In 1994, he took on a new role improving P&Gs planning systems for North America. Three years later, Dick began traveling globally to lead P&Gs implementation efforts worldwide. Eventually, Dicks work would take him to Germany, England, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Poland, Greece, Russia, Egypt, Singapore, China, Japan, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela, among others. In 2005, Dick received the prestigious Magnus Award from P&G. Dick celebrated his 35th anniversary with P&G earlier this year and was still sending e-mails from his hospital room. Dicks work also has been recognized outside of P&G -- the CGT Inside News has called him the Father of Demand Planning.

Dick was a member of the Barbershop Harmony Society for more than 30 years, singing four-part barbershop harmony in choruses and quartets. In Cincinnati, he was a longtime member of the Southern Gateway Chorus, where he won an International Chorus Championship in 1992. He enjoyed sharing the Southern Gateway experience with his son in the 90s. Dick and Sharon have attended Faith Community United Methodist church in West Chester since moving to Cincinnati in 1986. Dick was an active member, serving in the bell choir, chancel choir, various committees, and various small groups.

Dick, a lifetime non-smoker, was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer in August 2008. Over the last three years, Dick has battled through surgery to remove a lobe of his right lung, multiple rounds of chemotherapy, multiple rounds of radiation, and stereotactic radiosurgery, among other treatments. Through it all, Dick continued to work and travel, enjoying the final years of his life and maintaining a positive attitude and a fighting spirit. Dick never complained and never stopped fighting " even in the final weeks, when he was struggling with language, Dick courageously continued to ask the doctors for aggressive treatment to recover from his stroke symptoms and resume a promising new chemo treatment.

A celebration of Dicks life will take place on September 17, 2011 at Faith Community United Methodist Church, 8230 Cox Road, West Chester, OH 45069. A gathering will take place at 1:00 p.m. and the service will begin at 2:00 p.m. A time of fellowship with the family will follow the service. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Dick Clark Supply Chain Leadership and Character Scholarship, Attention: Jay Roberts, Director of Development, Dwight Look College of Engineering, Texas A&M Foundation, 334 Wisenbaker, 3126 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-3126 or In Honor of Richard A. Clark to Faith Community United Methodist Church, 8230 Cox Road, West Chester, OH 45069 (to benefit the traditional music ministry).

The music of Dicks beloved Aggie Band was playing when Dick passed away. The chaplain remarked that he was certainly marching into heaven. The family believes Dicks story is personified by an Aggie poem called The Last Corps Trip. It is available at: http://www.aggieband.com/poems/bpoem3.html.

Mueller Parker Funeral Home serving the Clark family. For details or to send a condolence, visit www.muellerparker.com 513-398-9100