Dr. Stanley Gordon Clarke

Stan was my first philosophy Prof. and the first intro. class I took with him basically sealed the deal of me continuing in philosophy-- the path I am still on. What about Stan impacted me most at that time was his openmindedness. I will miss him.

Stan's intro to philosophy class woke me up from the daze of highschool. He graciously addressed the most boorish of my questions, and set me on the road to philosophy and science. I also met some great friends in his class. I got to know him a little and think he lived a great life.

STAN...

Somewhere among Stan’s things is a photograph of himself and Matthew, my son at 6 years old. Stan is sitting in an old nylon-webbed, aluminum-framed, tippy 1970’s lawn chair. He is holding Matthew’s hands high above their heads as Matthew is climbing up Stan’s legs aiming for his tummy. They are laughing.

It is a delightful image as is the one of Kristina, my daughter in her early thirties, shrieking with joy when she is greeted with the surprise of Stan sitting on my couch. Kristina gallops across the living room to bounce down beside Stan and give him a huge snuggle and snort and a big belly rub. They are laughing.

Of course, there were times that were not so funny, sweet and joy-filled and during those times Stan was on board, being there when asked, providing advice and offering kindness and support during the tough days. We were so fortunate to have him as our friend.

On the Saturday afternoon this December passed, I was privileged to sit beside him in that sacred space. Kristina came to sit and Matthew, though in Ottawa, was there as well. I felt sad peace. Stan was part of our lives for forty years. We loved him to bits and I am deeply grateful for his life and that he chose to share some of it with us and me.

Blessed be.......... Cammie :-)) X0

Stan and I first met when we were very green, newly minted professors at Bishop's University in the 1960s. We kept in touch on and off and especially in later years when we shared the experience of coming out as gay men.
I remember lovely times with Stan in Ottawa, Mexico City, Toronto (where the candles at his 55th birthday set off the fire alarm) and Vancouver. He was a warm, bright, gracious guy.

Dear Stan
I'll always treasure your thoughtfulness when my brother (Ted Marshall) passed, and you sent me photos from our childhood. Thank you for coming to visit me in
Armstrong, and for bringing me some of Teddy's artwork, which I will always cherish ... along with my memories of your kindness.

Dear Stan, you and I go back a long time. Our friendship spanned three and a half decades. You were there for me all those years, my dear friend, and I will miss you very much. To quote a wise song, “The young become the old / And mysteries do unfold / For that’s the way of time / No one, and nothing goes unchanged.” Of course, I treasure good memories of the times we spent together. Tale of three cities: Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver... In particular, I remember that sunny mid-September day (2007) when we drove up to Squamish, along Howe Sound, and had lunch. Quality time, lived in the moment! An opportunity to speak with you about life, past experiences, people we’ve known (Ted Marshall and others), our hopes and aspirations. That day, you were feeling energetic and optimistic... In the photo album, I’ve pasted a few photos taken near Shannon Falls and Porteau Cove. In those pictures, you look handsome, calm, thoughtful. Which is the way I will remember you, always.

Hey Stan, thanks for all your helpful advice, kind words and calm perspective. I will miss you with all my heart. Love Maki and Angie.

my two favorite stan stories.
when stan was teaching at carleton university and was involved with ted the dancer they both came out to shuswap lake in summer of 1976
and my brother glenn and I got an education on not judging abook by its cover. we had weights to work out on our front deck and ted was watching these young men throw around weights and after our performance walked up to the works and moved all of them without any effort and performed his pre dance workout to our disbelief that such a small man could do what we saw with our own eyes. all of this observed by stan and I believe to this day there was a message in the performance that is still to this day a feat of strength that is unmatched in my mind by anyone I have seen.
( rip ) ted. I also remember that they both came from toronto in a red honda civic that was a sight to see when big stan pulled his self out of it. my second was a game i played against stan at grama burritts that i still wonder about.
it was a board game that ibrought down for the family christmas dinner at gramas. first i must say i never lost at this game which was a cross between othelo and backgammon with a real thought process and one wrong move and it is over.
i waited for my chance to show old stan who the man is at board games in our family. he beat three games in a row and said he never saw the game before. i never lost before or after that. stan was one of a kind and the most cultured, dignified and
smart men i have ever met. i will do all possible to make his memorial in vancouver i wish all whoknew him well and hope we all picked up some of his skills. a little bit of stan in our hearts and minds would be a good thing. i hope aunt nellie and stan are together somewhere out there.


all my best terry mcaleese

You were my best friend when you lived in Regina