Sun archives
From left, Fletcher Jones Jr., Jerry Mack, Clark County Commissioner Donald Clark and Robert Mayer Evans attend an Israel Bonds event at the Riviera on Dec. 9, 1984.
Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017 | 2 a.m.
Donald Clark is seen in 1984.
When the Rev. Donald Clark didn’t show up for Sunday services at Life Care Center, his friends sensed something was wrong. In 18 years at the center, he was rarely absent.
They called the fire department to his house on Tonopah Drive, the same West Las Vegas house he had lived in since the 1960s, to find an ailing Clark. He died six days later on Saturday at age 84.
Clark, who came to Southern Nevada in 1952 from his native New Orleans when he was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, made his mark as a civil rights activist. He was the head of the local NAACP, served on the Clark County commission and worked tirelessly for equal rights, including the integration of black workers on the Strip.
Clark, along with other activists James McMillan and Charles West, lobbied Gov. Grant Sawyer and other officials to begin integration in Las Vegas. It became Clark's life’s work — and a duty he wanted little credit for.
Clark was appointed to the Clark County Commission in 1984 to fill the unexpired term of Woodrow Wilson, who had resigned after being convicted in an FBI bribery sting known as Operation Yobo. Clark served out the term but did not seek election to the commission.
“To this day he [Donald Clark] remains steadfast in his refusal to accept public recognition for his pioneering activities that have contributed so mightily to black progress in Nevada,” wrote Everett Louis Overstreet in his 1999 book "Black Steps in the Desert Sands" that chronicled African-American influence in the growth of Las Vegas.
Clark was the driving force behind the local Economic Opportunity Board, which launched the Operation Independence program under his leadership. That offered day-care services, a Head Start program for toddlers and legal aid to poor families.
To meet westside families and to understand their needs, Clark in the 1960s took a job as a milkman with Anderson Dairy.
“That is how he got to know people. That was a strategy to become familiar with people,” said Yolanda Clark Brandon, his daughter. “He came to Las Vegas and hit the ground running.”
Clark was preceded in death by his wife of 53 years, Louise. She was his high school sweetheart. The had four children — Donna Clark, Cornell Clark, Yolanda Clark Brandon and Betty Clark Crane.
“The focus was always education and being the best person we could be,” Brandon said. “He demanded excellence. He always said you have to know your useful purpose — when you go somewhere, why are you there and what are you doing.”
Clark, one of six children, is also survived by his sister, Lois Washington, and four grandchildren, Miles Brandon, Taylor Brandon, Tiffani Peoples and Anastasia Dextra.
Visitation is 3 p.m-7 p.m. Friday at Bunkers Mortuary, 925 Las Vegas Blvd. North. Services are scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday at Second Baptist Church, 500 Madison Ave.
