Virginia A. Clark

Virginia "Ginna" Arvold Clark of White Horse Village died peacefully on July 27th. She was 88.

Born in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, Ginna was the daughter of William Vernon Arvold and Florence Schewe Arvold. She graduated first in her class from Reedsburg High School and attended the University of Wisconsin on a full scholarship, graduating with a B.S. in Nursing in 1960. Care for and service to others would remain at the center of her life. Ginna moved to Swarthmore in 1965 with her first husband Hans Oberdiek, where she raised her four children and was a fixture in the community until her move to White Horse Village in 2021.

Ginna worked as a nurse until the late 1970s and always also found time to volunteer. She was a longtime and active member of the Swarthmore Presbyterian Church. Over the years, she was elected a Deacon, taught Sunday School, refinished furniture every summer for and assisted with Collectibles at the annual Church Fair, decorated the sanctuary during Christmas, sang in the Christmas caroling group, and planned church suppers and social hours as a member of "Martha's Group." In addition, Ginna was a founding board member of Swarthmore's chapter of A Better Chance, which brought gifted students from poor school districts to Swarthmore High School and then Strath Haven High School, providing them with a furnished school year home at the ABC House, bag lunches, sit-down dinners, and live-in house parents. She had an acute awareness of her own good fortune and always sought out ways to improve others' lives. Ginna remained an active volunteer in the White Horse Village community, serving on the Clubhouse Design Committee, setting tables in the Steeplechase dining room, and arranging flowers, a skill she honed as a longtime member of the Providence Garden Club. Ginna was also an expert furniture refinisher, painter, seamstress, weeder, and sweeper.

In 1977, Ginna married James Clark, a nephrologist and Chief of Medicine at Crozer-Chester Medical Center and a U.S. Navy veteran who served as a medic in the Pacific during World War II. Together, they traveled the world; shared their love of classical music and antiques; hosted raucous and hilarious theme parties for friends; spent Augusts, Thanksgivings, and any weekends they could at their home on the Chesapeake Bay; and showed a love for one another that was fairytale-like until Jim's death in 2008.

More than anything, Ginna was an incredible mom and a beloved Nan. She and Jim, as Nan and Poppy, meant the world to their children and grandchildren. Ginna was a trusted confidant and sage counselor to her children, dropping everything anytime anyone needed anything. She was entirely selfless. And as Nan to her thirteen grandchildren, she was a fixed point emanating love, nurturing, grace, fun, and ever-present smiles. Ginna loved being a grandmother more than anything. Her summers with them in Betterton were idyllic. Ginna was energized by her sprawling family, hosting every holiday every year until her move to White Horse, happily doing all the cooking on her own and pulling it off every time-she was magic.

Ginna is survived by her daughter Kristin Howard and son-in-law, Butch of Ocean Pines, Maryland, and grandchildren Seamus, Meghan, and Kate; daughter Anne Di Rosa of Washington, D.C., and grandchildren Elena, Isabel, Ben, and Matt; daughter Heidi Foggo and son-in-law, Larry Bruck of Rose Valley, Pennsylvania and grandchildren Henry, Virginia, and Peter; and son John Oberdiek and daughter-in-law, Patty of Merion Station, Pennsylvania and grandchildren, Sophie, Lucas, and Greta. She is also survived by her first husband, Hans Oberdiek, with whom she remained close, and her companion of the past decade, Douglas Bender. She was predeceased by her dear husband, James Clark.

A memorial service is scheduled for Friday, August 22nd at 11am at the Swarthmore Presbyterian Church.

The family has requested that any donations be made to Doctors Without Borders (give.doctorswithoutborders.org).