Eric Clark

[Deb Haskett May]

Eric Clark

Kenton Eric Clark (74), who always went by “Eric,” was affectionately
known as “Big E.” to friends and family, “Pappa Eric,” to his
grandchildren, and “Pappa E.” to his great-grandson. He and his wife,
Betty, lived in Carmel for over 50 years. Eric went on to Heaven at
7pm on October 7th, 2009, after months of “tryin’ to get better” from
illness. Eric was resting peacefully in his beloved family room,
surrounded by his wife, children, and grandchildren during his final
moments.

Eric was born on September, 1st 1935, in Indianapolis, Indiana to Dr.
Cyrus J and Mrs. Edith L. Clark. He would tell friends, “I wasn’t born
in a log cabin, by we moved into one as soon as my parents could
afford it.” He had an older brother, Cyrus “Skip” Clark, and a younger
sister Patty. In 1941, Eric attended the 1st grade at Carmel
Elementary, and would remain in Carmel schools his whole life, save
for one year when he attended Broad Ripple High School. He graduated
from Carmel High School in 1953. Eric married his high school
sweetheart, Betty Linebarger and was a loving husband to her for 56
wonderful years. The couple had three children, Deborah, Douglas, and
David.

Eric was a graduate of Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana. At
Earlham, he earned 12 varsity athletic letters in football,
basketball, track, and volleyball. Eric was acknowledged as the
Earlham basketball team most valuable player in 1954-55. In football,
he was a starter at quarterback and middle linebacker. Later in life,
he would be quick to tell modern football players about how he “played
both ways with no facemask.” Eric was also an All-American Volleyball
player while playing for the Earlham Quakers. He was awarded the
George Van Dyke Award- the highest award for an Earlham athlete- for
outstanding contribution to Earlham athletics in 1957. He was inducted
into the Earlham Athletics Hall of Fame in 1995. After earning his
Bachelors from Earlham, Eric went to Butler University where he earned
a Masters Degree in Education.

Eric was an educator in the Carmel Clay School System for 39 years,
during which time he was a teacher, counselor, and Assistant
Principal. He was in charge of student activities and prided himself
on being a matchmaker around prom time, often keeping a written log of
which students needed dates. There was even a TV show about this on
the Carmel High School channel called “Clark’s Couples,” where Eric
was the host and conducted a “Newlyweds” style game show with high
school couples. Eric served as the Head Coach for Football,
Basketball, and Track while at Carmel High School.

Eric’s crowning achievement as a coach came in 1977, when he led the
Carmel Greyhounds to win the I.H.S.A.A. Basketball State Title. Of the
100-plus state titles won by Carmel High School athletic teams, this
remains as Carmel’s only State Championship in Basketball. His
underdog team overcame immeasurable odds, losing 7 games in the
regular season, before making their run at the state title in the now
legendary single-class Indiana High School Basketball Tournament.
After defeating East Chicago Washington 53-52 in the final game,
Eric’s Greyhound team drew numerous comparisons to the famous 1954
Milan team that was depicted in the movie, “Hoosiers.” Eric was
awarded as the Indiana Basketball Coach of the Year for the 1976-77
season by Kellog’s and by the Indiana Sportswriters and Sportscasters.
He was nominated to coach the Indiana Basketball All-Stars in the
annual Indiana/Kentucky All-Star Game in 1978.

Eric retired from Carmel High School in 1997, 55 years after beginning
the first grade at the same school. In retirement, he enjoyed hunting
and fishing and watching sports. He caught a 45” Northern Pike while
in Canada one summer, and he made sure there were witnesses and took
several pictures to show to his buddies back home. Eric hunted small
game his entire life, and bred and raised Beagle Hounds for rabbit
hunting. It wasn’t until the late 90’s, when his son Doug purchased a
farm in Paoli, Indiana, that Eric began hunting deer and turkeys. He
took the first deer of his life with a cross bow in 2002, and would
forever after tell the story of how he and his granddaughter-in-law,
Margot, had to drag the deer out of a mucky pond in total darkness. He
had season tickets for Colts games, and he complained about the run
defense quite often, but not as often as his wife, Betty. Eric
attended nearly every Carmel High School basketball and football game,
home or away, throughout his retirement. He ran a firewood business
out of his house with his good friend, Earl Casper. Eric split and
sold firewood and delivered it to peoples’ houses, and even stacked it…
for an extra fee.

In the summers, Eric loved going to his son, David’s lake house at
Lake Wawasee, in northern Indiana. He would wake up early and wait for
the fishermen to boat down the channel that the house is on, so that
he could ask them, “Doin’ any good, men?” He won the bi-annual
shuffleboard tournament at the Clark Lakehouse on Labor Day 2009,
which would finally put his name on the family trophy (a shuffleboard
disc mounted on a plaque) for the first time. He adored his seven
grandchildren and was a special part of each of their lives. He
watched from the stands of the Carmel High School Football Stadium as
two of his granddaughters, Sarah and Betsy Gangstad were named
Homecoming Queen in their respective senior years of High School. He
attended nearly all of his granddaughter, Courtney Clark’s Carmel
Varsity Golf matches. From the same seat every game, he watched
grandsons, Taylor, Andrew, and Matthew Clark’s high school football
games at Carmel, and even in his final days of life, demanded to
attend every Carmel football home game to watch his youngest
grandchild, Molly, a Varsity Cheerleader. During those football games,
if you went up there to his seat to visit him, you would often find
him holding his great-grandson, Caden Clark in his lap.

Eric served on the Board of Directors of the Carmel Clay Education
Foundation. He was a past President of the Hamilton County Retired
Teachers Association. He was given the Jaycee’s Community Leader
award. He is a member of the Carmel High School Athletic Hall of Fame,
as well as the CHS Alumni Hall of Fame. In 1997, Eric was awarded as a
Sagamore of the Wabash by Indiana Governor Frank O’Bannon. He was
inducted to the Hamilton County Basketball Hall of Fame as well as the
Indiana High School Basketball Hall of Fame. He was given the Rotary
Club of Carmel Outstanding Service Award in 2000. Eric was a member of
Carmel Friend’s Church. The Carmel High School Athletic Facilities
were named after Eric upon their renovation in 1997. The competition
gymnasium, the freshman gymnasium, natatorium/competition swimming
pool, field house, weight room, training room, locker rooms, and
offices are all now named the Eric Clark Activity Center.

Eric’s greatest contribution to this world was his wonderful, loving,
caring personality. He spent every moment of his life making life
better for others. He loved his wife, Betty, more than any husband
ever has, and the two of them were constantly with family and friends,
putting smiles on every face. Eric was the consummate family man- a
leader, a role model, and a man with such a huge heart that could make
anyone feel better at any time. There has never been a man more
deserving of the phrase, “What a great guy.”

Eric is survived by his wife, Betty, his daughter Debbie Gangstad
(Jack), son Doug (Brenda), son David (Sue), his grandchildren Sarah
Gangstad, Taylor (Margot), Betsy Gangstad, Courtney, Drew, Matt, and
Molly and his great-grandson, Caden. He was preceded in death by his
father, Cyrus J. Clark II, his mother, Edith L. Clark, his brother
Cyrus J. “Skip” Clark III, and his sister, Patty Clark.

Call Carmel High School at 317-846-7721
317-846-7721 to make a donation to the Eric Clark Scholarship Fund.

“I thought Carmel was the ONLY high school in Indiana.”