Charles Edward Clark, Sr, 83, a long time Columbus, Ga resident and most recently of Sherman Oaks, CA, passed away on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 in hospice care of natural causes associated with Alzheimers.

Charles was born on August 26, 1939 to Elbert and Elzada Clark in Vienna, Ga. The oldest son of 11 children, Charles's early education was in the Dooley County, Ga school system.He went on to attend Clark College (now Clark Atlanta University) in Atlanta, Ga where he became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and received a BA in Business Administration in 1962. He proudly served his country in the United States Army during the Vietnam era achieving the rank of Corporal before his honorable discharge.He went on to earn his law degree from Woodrow Wilson College of Law in Atlanta, Ga in 1971 and continued his education at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California where he received his masters degree in Public Administration in 1973 and a masters in Organizational Psychology and Administration in 1976 from West Georgia College in Carrollton, Ga. He spent much of his working life continuing his education with numerous graduate courses and seminars in Health Administration at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

His early job at the Urban League In Atlanta set the stage for what would become a long standing career in service to the community. He moved into the Federal Government during the Jimmy Carter administration with a move to Washington DC where his wife Bunky was working on the Presidential transition team. In 1976, he began a career with the Department of Veterans Affairs as Special Assistant to former VA Administrator and Georgia Senator, Max Cleland. Subsequently, he was appointed to the Veterans Affairs Central office as Assistant Administrator for the Office of Personnel & Labor Relations, the Assistant Administrator for the Office of Human Goals and Special Assistant to the Deputy Chief Medical Director for Operations. In the field, he served as Associate Medical Director at VA Medical centers in Reno, Nevada, San Francisco and Palo Alto, California and Medical Center Director at Loma Linda, California and Ft Howard, Maryland.

Upon his retirement from the Veterans Administration, he moved with his wife Bunky back to her hometown of Columbus, Ga. In Columbus he served as Columbus Regional Healthcare System senior vice president, Columbus Regional Medical Foundation vice president and executive director and Junior Achievement.

Charles married his wife Lillian (Bunky) McClung, daughter of former Mayor Pro Tem AJ McClung in 1966. In 57 years of marriage, they share two children Charles Jr. of Phoenix, AZ and Candace of Los Angeles, CA.

Charles loved living in Columbus, Ga and was an active community member, volunteering his time in several charitable organizations. He was an active member of St. Luke United Methodist Church. Upon his diagnosis with Alzheimer's in 2015, Charles became a staunch supporter of the Alzheimer's Association of Columbus and led the Annual Walk to End Alzheimer's before moving out to Sherman Oaks, California to live with his daughter Candace and her family.

Charles was predeceased by his parents, Elbert and Elzada Clark, and In-law's, AJ and Helen McClung. He is survived by Wife, Lillian (Bunky) McClung Clark, son Charles Clark, Jr (Chuck), daughter Candace Clark Trinchieri, Son in-law Tommaso Trinchieri and grandchildren Madilyn Clark and Massimo (Max) Trinchieri and a host of siblings, cousins, nephews and nieces.

A Celebration of Life will be held April 17, 2023 at 11:00 am at St Luke Methodist Church in Columbus, GA. 

The family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association, an organization Charles felt strongly about.

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