By Moses Leos III
On Friday, longtime Buda resident Cecil Clark passed away at the age of 103-and-a-half years old.
Clark, who lived in the Central Texas area his whole life, grew up on a farm in Goforth.
According to a 2012 All Around Hays article, Clark worked as a firefighter at Camp Swift in Bastrop during the 1940’s. Following the end of World War II, Clark and his late wife, Wayne, opened Clark’s Market and Grocery on Main Street in Buda and operated the business for the next 23 years. They also had two children, Bobbie (Clark) Casper and Cecil Allen Clark, during that time.
After Wayne had back troubles, Clark sold everything in his store to a woman who at the time owned Buda Grocery. Clark then went on to work at Buda Grocery for an additional 20 years. Wayne Clark passed away in 2005.
Clark was also known in the community as the longtime caretaker of the Live Oak Cemetery in southern Travis County. He held that role for more than 40 years.
On Oct. 24, 2012, the Hays County Commissioner’s Court celebrated Clark’s 100th birthday by proclaiming “Cecil Clark Day.”
Visitation services for Clark will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, April 18 at Harrell Funeral Home in Kyle. Funeral services will be held Tuesday, April 19 at 10 a.m. at Harrell Funeral Home in Kyle. Burial will be held at Live Oak Cemetary.
