Leslie Banks Clark

1964 - 2018

Leslie Banks Clark

Homer - Leslie Banks Clark, 54, of Homer, Louisiana, died surrounded by family and friends on Friday, September 14, 2018, due to complications associated with pancreatic cancer. Leslie was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, on April 3, 1964. She graduated from Pineville High School in 1982. She then attended Northeast Louisiana University in Monroe where she met the love of her life and married in 1986 on the same day she received her BS in Finance. She was a devoted and loving wife to her late husband, Daryn, and caring mother to her three children, Barrett, Kathleen, and Mary Laura. After working in the banking industry, she decided to return to school to become a school teacher. She taught school for 14 years. In addition to being passionate about making a difference in the lives of children, she loved all animals. Any animal fortunate enough to be left in the care of Leslie was assured a life of loving and pampering. If she couldn't take the animal, she made certain someone else would do it. This devotion to animals led her to volunteering for Pet Savers Shelter in Shreveport. Leslie loved to travel and was able to see the world in her short lifetime, even climbing to the top of Machu Picchu, Peru, in April of this year.

Leslie was preceded in death by her husband, Daryn Clark; father, James Merritt Banks; sister-in-law, Julie Clark Gill; mother-in-law, Sheilah Clark; and grandparents, Kathleen and Leslie Miller and Jimmie and Hudson Banks. Leslie is survived by her children, Barrett, Kathleen, and Mary Laura Clark; mother, Monte Miller Banks; sister Beth and brother-in-law Brandon Bueche; father-in-law, Charles Clark; brother-in-law and wife, Chris and Cheryl Lea Clark; and brother-in-law, John Gill; nephews, John Merritt Bueche, Colin Clark, and Griffin Hawkins; nieces, Elizabeth Bueche, Leanne Bueche, Rachel Clark, Caitlan Clark, and Kayla Hawkins; numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. There is no way to express the amount of appreciation the family feels for so many people, but some must be mentioned by name. Leslie's Aunt Leah Miller and Aunt Becky Waller supported Leslie and the rest of the family every step of the way. Always one to keep a very close friend group, Leslie's family also wishes to acknowledge special thanks for the loyal friendships of Manon Allen, Paige Reeder, Robin Freeman, and Cynthia McKinsey. In addition, Dr. Scott Haynes and Dr. Maria Haynes provided so much more than medical assistance; they were true friends in every sense of the word. Although far away, Rebecca Fuglaar Hutchison was Leslie's dearest and best friend for almost forty years. Their bond was of epic proportion and it meant more than anything to Leslie that Becky made the trip across the Atlantic last month for one last hurrah.

A memorial service will be held on Monday, September 24, 2018 at 11:00am at St. John Episcopal Church in Minden, Louisiana, followed by a reception at Buck Creek Lodge, 4400 LA-534, Haynesville, Louisiana. Leslie's family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations on her behalf be sent to: Pet Savers Shelter, 632 Dudley Drive, Shreveport, LA 71104; or Children's Brain Tumor Project, Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center, Attn: Roseann Henry, 525 East 68th Street Box 99, New York, NY 10065.