Mary Frazier Clark died at the age of 95 on Oct. 20. Clark was the first female member of the board of trustees and an ACU alumna, graduating in 1944.
Mary Frazier Clark was born to W.G an Mintie Frazier in Levelland, TX, on Jan. 31, 1932. She married John D. Clark in 1946 in Sundown, who died in 1977.
Mary Frazier Clark who died at the age of 95 on Oct. 20.
When she attended ACU, she was highly involved–being a part of the Kitten Klub, the Dormitory Council, the Ellen H. Richards club, Melpomenean Players, Girls training classes, missions study and the W Club. Her daughter, Mary Clark, said her mother was honored t0 be on the board of trustees and befriended the members, because she loved ACU and loved how it helped her to grow spiritually.
“She was thrilled when they asked to be a part of the board of ACU and being the first woman during those days was an honor to her, and she was always humbled by that,” Mary Clark said. “She and Ruth Stevens, Dr. Steven’s wife, loved sports and they would sit together at basketball games, but they weren’t always the best behaved fans, especially if they didn’t like a ref’s call.”
Clark loved her church, her kids, and ACU. When she loved, she loved with her whole heart. Mary Frazier Clark would always be at church and would teach young girls on Wednesday evenings, or help cook meals for funerals, involving herself in everything her children did.
Mary Frazier Clark’s yearbook picture in the Prickly Pear in 1942
When it came to cooking, her daughter, Mary Clark, said her mother was amazing and could make anything with having very little.
“She was an incredible cook,” Mary Clark said. “She grew up 50 miles in the country and she just learned to make something out of nothing because she never followed a recipe. Somebody would ask her for a recipe and she would say that she took a little of this and a little of that.”
Mary Frazier Clark was tenacious and firm with others, but was always able to love everyone immensely.
“She was pretty stubborn, she was a straight-shooter, she would tell you what she thinks but in the kindest way possible,” Mary Clark said. “She wasn’t shy about letting her opinion be known, but she always bled with love- even if you disagreed with her, you still walked away knowing she loved you”
Clark said a funny story which embodied her mother’s personality occurred during her time as an ACU student, during a time when women had to wear a hat and pantyhose when they left campus. One day, she went downtown without her hat and pantyhose, and the dean of women caught her and asked what she would have done if she met Jesus, to which Clark responded she would prefer to meet Jesus than the dean.
