Born as Patricia Louise Goodwin in Ohio on October 3, 1926 to parents Joseph and Mary Goodwin. She died on Sunday, September 28th, 2014 in Dallas, Texas as Patricia G. Clark.
With a deep Irish family background on her mother’s side and a proud Polish heritage on her father’s side, Pat discovered early on that she was an actual descent from ancestors who aided in achieving American independence. She researched her lineage extensively and validated her bloodline which resulted in her becoming a proud national member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).
Pat grew up just outside Columbus, Ohio in a small farming community and graduated from Ohio State University in June 1948 with a Bachelor’s of Science undergraduate degree in Business Administration. She was an active member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority and was initiated into the sorority on April 1, 1946. She received her 50th year sorority membership recognition award during April 1996 and in 2006 achieved status as a lifetime member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority.
Being an incredibly outgoing and ambitious woman with fabulous taste in clothes, she started her career in New York as a fashion buyer. After a series of promotions and various job offers, she accepted a position with the world famous J.L. Hudson Company in 1950 as the fashion buyer. The J.L. Hudson Company was founded in 1881 and had its headquarters and flagship store in Detroit. During the 1940s and the 1950s, the flagship store was the tallest department / retail building in the world until 1961. The building had 2.2 million square feet of retail floor space on 33 floors.
Pat was a lifelong extremely devoted “Buckeye” fan and she met her husband to be, Tom Clark, on a first date during the one of the most noted historical college football games in the celebrated history of the Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry; the “Snow Bowl”. The Snow Bowl was the nickname given to the college football game played on November 25, 1950 between the University of Michigan and the Ohio State University. The famous “Snow Bowl” game earned the Michigan Wolverines the Big Ten Conference championship and a berth in the 1951 Rose Bowl. A side note was that first date resulted Pat and Tom being married almost eight (8) months later on June 15, 1951. Pat and Tom in July of 1955, had a son, who following the Clark family tradition, was also named Tom. During the spring of 1959, the family moved to Texas.
Pat became involved in Real Estate in the 1960s and started studying for her Texas Real Estate license. She passed the State of Texas Real Estate exam and achieved her Texas Real Estate license in 1967 and then achieved her Texas Real Estate Broker’s License in 1973. She achieved membership first in the Million Dollar Sales Club in 1970 and then finally in the Multi-Million Dollar Sales Club in 1978.
Pat celebrated 62 years of marriage with her husband Tom in June 2013. During their long marriage together, Pat and Tom loved to travel and they were fortunate enough with Tom’s job to be able to travel to several countries and made so many friends in both North America and throughout Europe.
Some of the more memorable adventures were the European barge and canal boat trips Pat and Tom took through Burgundy in France, Belgium, Holland in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and in Germany.
Another fun adventure they really enjoyed together was celebrating with three other couples; cousins Jim & Jean Clark, the Henrys, and the Linklaters during the annual Can-Am Golf tournament hosted in several countries and on multiple golf courses around the world. On the 50th anniversary year of the annual Can-Am golf tournament, in 1995, the golf tournament was played at one of the oldest golf courses in the world, St Andrews. The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews in Scotland hosted the four couples during the historical 50th anniversary of the annual Can-Am golf tournament.
Another memorable adventure for Pat and Tom was experiencing firsthand the world famous Oktoberfest festival in Munich, Bavaria, Germany which started in 1810. Pat and Tom traveled to Germany for ten (10) years consecutively from 1977 until 1986 enjoying the rich Bavarian food, traditional beer, and culture.
Pat Clark was truly unforgettable in over 20 countries around the world. She had a quiet elegance that always put everyone at ease making them feel special and a remarkable sense of humor that made it a true joy to be with her.
She was a devoted wife, a great mother, and a fun grandmother in addition to becoming a great-grandmother.
Pat is survived by her son Tom and her daughter-in-law Tommie; her two grandchildren, Jennifer and Brian; and her two great-grand children, Liam and Ethan.
A memorial service will be held 4:00 p.m., Saturday, October 4, 2014 at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home in Allen, Texas.