T. Key Clark III

T. Key Clark III, 69, a Roanoke, Va., native, who had currently resided in St. Simons Island, Ga., and Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., crossed his last goal line on September 23, 2009. His father, Thomas K. Clark Jr., and his mother, Marguerete, predeceased him. Key is survived by his wife, Cindy, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; her children, Bret and Kim; his stepmother, June, of Roanoke; his brother, Jim; and sister, Tina. Key is also survived by his daughter, Kesa. Key graduated from Jefferson High School in 1959 where he excelled in football and track. Key was an All-State selection at halfback where he was one of the leading vote getters. He was also named to the Roanoke World News All City-County team and the Group I All Western District team. He played in the Virginia-West Virginia All Star game as well as the Virginia High School All Star game. Key was the leading scorer in the Roanoke city-county area his senior year and was awarded a football scholarship to Virginia Tech based on his gridiron feats. Key was also a standout in track, winning the 100-and 220-yard dashes in the annual City-County track meet as well as the 60-yard dash in the State. Key was a member of the Jefferson relay team along with Carlton Waskey, Jay Blackwood, and Jackie Taylor, that broke the existing 440-yard relay record in the Virginia Tech Relay in 1958. In 1995, Key and his friend, Viorel Malea, kayaked from St. Simons Island, Ga., to the St. Mary's River on the GeorgiaFlorida border and then upstream and through the Okefenokee Swamp to the Gulf of Mexico. This 13-day, 350-mile journey in a 21' kayak is believed to be the first non-motorized crossing of the Florida peninsula. Key had a successful career as a leading salesman in the yellow page division of Bell South. After taking an early retirement, he and his partner, Jay Martin, created the Island Directory Company that published telephone directories in the St. Simons Island-Jekyll Island, Ga., area and the Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., area. Key was an avid lover of history, especially the Civil War period, and was a member of the Roanoke Civil War Roundtable, making several battlefield tours with that fine group. Key's life was made better by having his best friend of 50 years, Warren Ferguson, available for travel, golf and sharing a "wee-dram." A memorial service was held in Ponte Vedra Beach to honor Key's passing.