Harry Clark, of Portland, Oregon, passed away on April 11, 2024, from congestive heart failure at age 93. He was born on August 24, 1930, to Harry F and Isabelle M Clark in Chicago, Illinois. After graduation from St. Gregory High School in 1948, he studied biological science and agriculture at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

He enlisted in the Navy in 1951 and was trained as an aircraft mechanic and pilot at Whidby Island, WA, Jacksonville, FL, and Memphis, TN. After training, he was stationed at Iwakuni, Japan where he flew with a squadron that flew P2V Neptune twin engine patrol planes designed to hunt for Russian submarines in the Sea of Japan near the Korean Coast.

Needing his Navy uniform altered, he walked into a tailoring shop in Iwakuni and met a seamstress that became his wife and the love of his life, Junko Kondo. They spent their free time together on a motor scooter, visiting neighboring villages, seeing the countryside, having picnics, and going to the movies. Harry and June were married on April 2, 1954, at an American Consulate office in a town called Fukuoka. They rented a creek-side house surrounded by rice paddies on the edge of town and enjoyed four years together there.

Harry’s service with the Navy terminated at the end of 1955. He flew back to the states and awaited his beloved June to arrive on a Naval ship in San Francisco, CA. After they were reunited, they made their way to Chicago, where all of Harry’s family lived and welcomed June with open arms. Harry and June’s two daughters were born: first Kathy in 1957, then Christine in 1958.

Harry started work with American Airlines as an aircraft mechanic in 1956 and attended Flight Engineer training in 1959. He was based at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport and flew DC6, DC7, L-188, C990, and Boeing272. After moving to the Bay Area, he transferred to San Francisco International Airport in 1984 to fly the DC10 to Honolulu. Harry flew his last trip from Honolulu, HI, to San Francisco, CA on August 28, 1996, and retired. After 40 years with American, Harry says, “When I think of the thousands of trip sequences I have flown that moved tens of thousands of passengers in many types of aircraft through any weather you can imagine, I say to myself, ‘Did I really do all that?’” He did indeed do all that and went on to thank “the best cockpit crews in the industry”, the flight attendants who were the “group that is always at the front and in the trenches” and had much appreciation for the Union. Harry and June continued to live in the Bay Area for 22 years, then moved to the Portland area in 2006.

Harry was an active and curious soul. He had many hobbies, including sailing, bike riding, fishing, beer, and root beer making, bee keeping, gardening, and could fix and build almost anything. He welded gates and fences for their properties, harvested gallons of fruit from their various fruit trees, worked endlessly on projects around the house such as building and maintaining several koi ponds, rock garden waterfalls, extensive decks, installed garden watering systems, and harvested honey every year. Just last year, he gave up bee keeping, his favorite hobby. His most treasured memories were of a vacation lake home built to their specification in Boulder Junction, a small town in Northern Wisconsin. There the family spent Christmases and summers fishing, water skiing, canoeing, boating, berry picking, and cross-country skiing with friends and family. Harry recalls it being the most treasured time of his life.

This year, April 2, 2024, marked Harry and June’s 70th wedding anniversary.

Harry has been described as the kindest, most patient, loving husband, father, uncle, and unwavering friend. His family was everything to him as he dedicated his entire life to their health, happiness, and well-being. His sense of humor was ever present, along with a constant contagious cheerfulness. As a father to Kathy and Christine, they assert that he was their savior and their champion who at an early age, taught them to swim, fish, ice skate, paddle a canoe, practice archery, and appreciate nature. They revere him as the most precious person on the earth who instilled on them the importance of kindness and responsibility toward others in the world. As a grandfather to Fiona and Finnur, Harry spent endless hours at Chuck E. Cheese, play structures at parks, reading books, and many trips to the zoo.

Harry is survived by his wife, June Clark (Portland, OR), his sister Helene Roling (Delevan WI), his oldest daughter Kathy Clark, (Jokull Tomasson) (Reykjavik, IS), daughter Christine Clark (Mary Clark) (Portland, OR), grandchild Fiona Will (Portland, OR), and grandchild Finnur Tomasson (Reykjavik, IS). Nieces and Nephews include Cindy Kraayeveld (Dave), Mark Roling (Rebecca), Thomas Roling (Christy), Sandi Moore, James Moore (Shari).

Harry is predeceased by his parents Harry F Clark (July 6, 1966), Isabelle M Clark (October 8, 1994) younger brother, Thomas Clark, brother-in-law Edward Roling, niece Janet Roling and nephew Edward Roling Jr.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation to The Bee Conservancy, a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting, safeguarding the environment, and securing food justice. https://thebeeconservancy.org/ Obituary written by Christine Clark, christine@cclarkstudio.com

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