Greg Clark

Greg Clark dedicated his career to helping military veterans. Now he and his late wife are extending their support to veterans through their estate plans at the University of Iowa.

It’s been 53 years, but Greg Clark (85MA) still remembers the day like it was yesterday: March 13, 1968.

Clark was driving the lead vehicle near a military compound in Binh Phouc, Vietnam, when he hit a land mine and veered off into a rice field. “The next thing I knew I couldn’t see—I thought I had gone blind,” says Clark, who was a combat engineer during the Vietnam War. “Thankfully, I just couldn’t see because of all the dirt and mud in my eyes.”

Along with three others, Clark was loaded into a medivac helicopter and flown to a military hospital in Saigon, Vietnam. Luckily, he sustained only mild wounds. But that dangerous moment in Vietnam made a big impact on Clark’s future career.

“Even though I was wounded, my fear level up to that point was relatively minimal compared to those who were out in the jungle for extended periods of time. So many troops had it much worse than I did,” says Clark. “Vietnam planted a seed and fostered a compassion for those who actually did what I was prepared to do but was fortunate enough to not have to do: combat. In turn, it played a role in my path forward.”

Clark, of Garnavillo, Iowa, pursued a psychology degree at the University of Northern Iowa and came to the University of Iowa to earn a master’s degree from the counselor education program—all the while working as a pilot with Lifeguard Air Ambulance service in Cedar Rapids. He chose Iowa because of a lifetime love for the university.

“I’ve always considered myself a Hawkeye fan, and I had planned to go to the University of Iowa,” says Clark. “Iowa’s counseling education program exposed me to different components of being a counselor and different types of counseling—family, marriage, individual, and group counseling. I graduated with a well-rounded sense of confidence.”

In 1985, Clark was hired by the federal government to create the Cedar Rapids Vet Center, an outreach program through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that provides individual and group counseling to veterans, service members, and their families. Throughout his career, Clark worked with nearly 1,000 veterans.

“My heart has always been with, and for, the veterans,” says Clark. “My late wife, Joanne, always referred to my veteran clients as my friends. There is a bond and brotherhood between veterans, which is why my wife and I decided to help those who are trying to better themselves by establishing these gifts—and hopefully these veteran students will be encouraged by the awareness that others care about them.”

Through a bequest in their estate plans, the Clarks established the Joanne and Gregory Clark Memorial Veterans Support Fund and the Joanne and Gregory Clark Memorial Scholarship Fund. The funds will benefit University of Iowa student-veterans and will provide student aid, academic programming, and instructional technology to enhance their educational experience.

“Over the years, I’ve learned the importance of giving and the wisdom and benefits of it—everyone wins when you do,” says Clark. “I hope our giving helps future veterans and military personnel improve their quality of life, as well as motivate them to give back.”

* Planned gifts for all areas of the University of Iowa are made through the University of Iowa Center for Advancement, which is an operational name for the State University of Iowa Foundation.

Learn how you can create your legacy at Iowa by contacting Susan Hagan, JD at 319-335-3305 or susan.hagan@foriowa.org.