Mary Hollis Clark

Mary Hollis Clark November 2, 1921 - December 19, 2010 SAN DIEGO, CA— Columbus, Georgia native Mary Hollis Clark suffered a heart attack at her Mission Hills home in San Diego and died Sunday, December 19th. She was 89. She was born Nov. 2, 1921, in Columbus, Ga., to Howell and Aylmer Illges Hollis. She earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Georgia in 1942. She married James Dallas Clark, who was then a captain in the U.S. Army, in 1943. The couple settled in San Diego in 1946 . Mrs. Clark is survived by two daughters, Nita van der Werff of Taos, N.M., and Dale Clark of Bend, Ore.; two granddaughters and a great-granddaughter. The San Diego Union Tribune published a glowing and informative obituary article regarding Mary Clark's generous philanthropy and gracious manner. The article can be found and read at http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/dec/22/fundraiser-civic-leader-mary-hollis-clark-dies. Even though Mary Clark spent 64 years living in San Diego, she still maintained close contact with her family and friends in Columbus. She would visit Columbus at least yearly and enjoy a very active schedule of events and visits with family and friends. In addition to her active involvement in the San Diego community, Mary maintained an active role in supporting the Columbus community through her family foundation, The Hollis Foundation, Inc. She was very interested in the many organizations supported by the Hollis Foundation. She would review the recommendations for the annual distributions from the Foundation with great interest. On her many visits to Columbus she would make a point to visit the designated organizations or follow up on the progress of the projects supported by the Foundation. In her absence from Columbus, she quietly made an impact on the Columbus community just as she did in San Diego. Mary was the sister of Howell Hollis, a long time Columbus philanthropist and lawyer at Hatcher, Stubbs, Land, Hollis and Rothschild. The family suggests donations to the San Diego Natural History Museum, the San Diego Public Library Foundation or the Friends of Balboa Park. A celebration of life is planned for early spring