Bill Text: MS SR6 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Paying tribute to the memory of respected Morton Physician and Community Leader Dr. Howard D. Clark, M.D.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-3)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-02-18 - Adopted [SR6 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2020-SR6-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2020 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) McCaughn, Kirby
Senate Resolution 6
A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE LIFE AND PAYING TRIBUTE TO THE MEMORY OF RESPECTED MORTON PHYSICIAN AND COMMUNITY STALWART DR. HOWARD D. CLARK, M.D., AND EXTENDING THE SYMPATHY OF THE SENATE TO HIS BEREAVED FAMILY.
WHEREAS, it is with sadness that we note the passing of well-known Morton, Mississippi, Physician and Community Leader Dr. Howard D. Clark, age 93, on February 10, 2020; and
WHEREAS, walk into Mississippi Care Center of Morton, Mississippi, a nursing home facility, any day of the week, and you would find Dr. Howard Clark jovially visiting with the residents. They referred to him as their doctor, and even though he just retired at 90-years-old, they are not incorrect. For many of the patients he was talking with, he was their doctor (and sometimes the only doctor in Morton) for most of their lives; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Clark earned his medical certificate at the University of Mississippi and then his M.D. at Tulane University before doing a one-year rotating internship in 1955 at the newly opened University of Mississippi Medical Center. He had been an instrumental figure in the health care of the Morton community since he opened Clark Clinic in 1956; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Clark also helped establish Scott Regional Hospital and started Mississippi Care Center, both in Morton. He delivered more than 4,500 babies in the area, made countless house calls, and served as team doctor for the local high school sports teams, among many other things, and never insisted on payment, although he would occasionally be paid in chickens and even moonshine. He was the unofficial face of health care in the area, but he humbly referred to it as answering God's call for his life; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Clark grew up in Perry County and graduated from Richton High School in 1944. Feeling a duty to serve his country, he enlisted in the Army Reserves. After being honorably discharged, Clark attended Mississippi State University to earn his undergraduate degree; and
WHEREAS, during his time at UMMC, Clark said he worked with Medical Center icons, Dr. Arthur Guyton and Dr. James Hardy. Clark was a hard-working intern and said that professors wanted him to stay and focus on surgery. "I knew country people needed my help more than city people did," he said. When he came to Morton, Clark saw 35 patients on the day he opened his clinic and worked until every patient had been seen on any given day after that. "I've seen it for years," said granddaughter Natalie Hannah of Morton, who used to work as a nurse in his clinic. "He has never had office hours; it was just his life. He answered the phone 24/7/365 and never took a vacation. He just slept until he woke up and then starting working"; and
WHEREAS, what stood out most about Dr. Clark was the reality of small town medicine. Clark was always on duty. In the clinic, at the grocery store, at the football game, in the parking lot, always. He would see patients for a little while, run to the nursing home, go back to the clinic, then run to the hospice facility, skip over to the emergency department, go back to the clinic, pause for lunch, run over to the pharmacy, go back to clinic and then head to the football game to be the doctor on call; and
WHEREAS, appropriately, he was named Country Doctor of the Year by Staff Care in 2001, when he was still actively providing care for patients at the hospital, clinic, nursing home and making house calls at the age of 73. He represented a continuum of care, service, love and dedication for the facility and the community; and
WHEREAS, clearly admired by many, Dr. Clark summed up a lifetime of humble service. "My practice of medicine is a God-given time of my life that I have enjoyed. It has been a pleasure to continue serving my God. That is not work. I could not retire. His message never changed"; and
WHEREAS, we pay tribute and cherish fondly the memory of this most public-spirited citizen of Mississippi with enormous health care and civic energy. Dr. Clark was a wonderful example to others of how to live your convictions with courage, and he will be missed by all who were fortunate enough to have known his special wisdom and dedication:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend the life and pay tribute to the memory of respected Morton Physician and Community Stalwart Dr. Howard D. Clark, M.D., and extend the sympathy of the Senate to his bereaved family.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Dr. Howard Clark and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.
