Merlin Ralph Clark was born February 20, 1953 in Spirit Lake, IA, the son of Elbert and Donna (Trunell) Clark. He was baptized and confirmed in the Lake Park Methodist Church. He attended school in Lake Park, IA. He was united in marriage to Cindy Thom on April 8th, 1972 in Windom, MN. They were blessed with 2 sons, Chad and Brady. They spent the majority of their lives in Grand Forks, ND where they raised their children. They also provided foster care services for over 30 children while living in Grand Forks. They attended Augustana Lutheran Church. Merlin enlisted in the United States Air Force in July 1971. In November 1971, when he finished basic training, he was transferred to the Grand Forks Air Force Base where he served 4 years in the Fire Department. After his active duty, he served an additional 27 years as a Civil Servant with the Grand Forks Air Force Base Fire Department. He was promoted to Assistant Chief in 1986 and retired after 31 years of service on April 3rd, 2003. His many years of devoted service and dedication to training other firemen leaves a legacy of superb performance. Following retirement, Merlin and Cindy moved to Arizona and enjoyed having many friends and family visit them during the winter months. In the summer months, they traveled back to the Midwest, again visiting family and friends. Throughout Merlin's life, he enjoyed watching and attending a variety of sporting events. He was able to keep very active until recently when his health began to decline. He died at the age of 66 at North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale, MN on August 22, 2019. His surviving family includes his wife Cindy; sons: Chad (Holly) Clark of Chaska, MN, and Brady Clark (Teri) of Lynnwood, WA; 4 grandchildren: Kayla, Andrew, Emma, and Sean; 1 brother and 3 sisters: Jeannette Kellar of Lake Park, IA, Jerry (Ilene) Clark of Lakefield, MN, Julie (Dan) Fordyce of Aurelia, IA, and Judi (Dar) Renner of Burnsville, MN; 1 sister-in-law and 2 brothers-in-law: Carol (Randy) Schenk, Stan Thom, and Randall Thom; and many nieces and nephews. He is also survived by several foster children, significantly important are Kassie Kuntz, Jerrod "Boomer" Miller, and Vickie Jones. Additionally, all of the firefighters with whom he worked are considered family. He is preceded in death by his parents, his brother Elwin Clark, sister-in-law Doris Clark, brother-in-law Darrell Thom, father-in-law Ronald Thom, and mother-in-law Lucille Thom.