Dwight Wilson Clark's funeral brought together his friends, family, and the people of San Angelo who came to pay their respects to a man who dedicated his life to helping others. The ceremony took place at Lawnhaven Cemetery this afternoon.
Clark was born January 21, 1937 to William Glenn Clark, a federal firefighter for Goodfellow Air Force Base, and his wife Aleene Elizabeth Wilson Clark in San Angelo, Texas. He was 79 at the time of his passing.
“Chief Clark had been on the job virtually my whole career," said Jason Shivers, Division Chief of Technical Services for the Forsyth County Fire Department. “He was hired from the [Georgia] State Fire Academy to Forsyth County as a deputy chief shortly after I began.”
Clark retired from Forsyth County in 2013 after serving there for 12 years and had accumulated a total of 54 years dedicated to fire service.
Shivers read a poem to those in attendance that captured the importance of Clark’s teachings. These lessons were always going to stay with those who knew him. And for those who didn’t know him, they learned how much he loved to teach others.
“We all have benefited and learned from his teachings," Shivers said. “The man touched so many firefighter lives, not just within Forsyth County, or the academy, or in Texas, but around the world.”
Clark started his career as a firefighter at the age of 21 on July 1, 1959. He was reported to have only been working less than two hours before he was called out to a kitchen fire. This led him to respond to many fires, wrecks, people in need and tragedies. He eventually rose through the ranks and found himself being promoted to Assistant Fire Chief in San Angelo.
“There are now entire generations of firefighters using the very techniques and skills today that he has taught over the years,” Shivers mentioned. “That is a heck of a legacy to leave.”
Clark spent his days off working at the local hospital as an ER paramedic. Knowing he wanted to inspire others to take pride and ownership of their jobs was always a goal he had in mind. He transferred to Austin, Texas where he worked as a fire chief for one year before traveling to Forsyth, Georgia.
“He left a lasting impression on the fire service, not just a singular moment in time, but a 50-plus-year impression on what we do,” Shivers said. Now, that’s a rare thing; that’s extremely unusual for someone to have that kind of impact on any career.”
Fire Chief Brian Dunn of the San Angelo Fire Department also got to work with Clark while he was starting on the force.
“I think there are thousands of firefighters who are better off because of how Dwight was with the training and the things he tried to exemplify,” Dunn said. “He was my first battalion chief when I came on the force.”
During the funeral, a bell ceremony was performed by the fire service as well as a flag folding ceremony. Fire Chief Dunn handed the Texas flag to Pat Clark, wife of Dwight Clark.
Shivers mentioned that these ceremonies are not preformed just to remember Clark, but primarily done for his family.
“We’re all brothers and sisters in a heck of a career that transcends the fire house and it reaches all the way out to their immediate families, so Chief Clark was not only a deputy chief to us, but a brother,” Shivers said.
Matt Clark, son of Dwight Clark, currently serves as a member of the Forsyth County Fire Department. He sang a song while playing on his guitar during the ceremony in remembrance of his father. Many people listened, remembered and honored the man who left behind an amazing legacy.
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