Larry “Coach” Clark, 89 of Carroll, died Monday, July 7, 2025 surrounded by his wife of 63 years and his four children.
Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 12, 2025 at Holy Spirit Church – St. John Paul II Parish in Carroll. The Celebrant will be Fr. Craig Collison. Mass Servers will be Jake Buelt and Josh Sapp. Music will be by Jake Gute and Sherry Loughran. Lector for the Funeral Mass will be Phil Phillips. Gift Bearers will be great-grandchildren: Henry Richman, Lincoln Richman, Jax Ludwig, Kinley Ludwig, and Braxton Boeckman. Eucharistic Ministers will be Connie Sapp, Kris Boeckman, Phil Phillips, and Leon Muhlbauer. Casket Bearers will be Larry’s grandchildren. Burial will be in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Carroll with military honors conducted by the Carroll American Legion.
A visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Friday at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll with a Christian Wake Service at 7 p.m. The casket will be moved to Holy Spirit Church on Saturday morning where additional visitation will be from 9-9:45 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be left at the funeral home or the church for a later designation.
Funeral arrangements are under the guidance of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for the Clark family at www.sharpfuneral.com.
Laurence Edward Clark, son of Harry and Margaret (Burkhardt) Clark, was born on October 13, 1935 in Audubon. Upon graduating from Audubon High School, he joined the Army from 1954-1956 stationed in France where he became one heck of a cook! Larry then attended college at Northwest Missouri State in Maryville and graduated with high honors in 1961. On December 24, 1961, he married Sharon J. Anderson at St. Patrick’s Church in Audubon, Iowa.
Larry and Sharon moved their family to Carroll in 1973, which was his last move with the Social Security Administration. He began this career in 1961, retired in 1992, and also began his career as the Kuemper Catholic Boys Golf coach in 1988. Forever known as “Coach,” Larry would hold this position until 2012. He received numerous coach of the year awards, won state championships in 1995, 2009, 2010, 2011, took his team to state thirteen times, and captured eleven conference titles. In 2017, Larry was inducted into the Iowa High School Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Besides coaching over 650 high school student-athletes with his calm and consistent approach, Larry gave numerous junior golf lessons to kids of all ages in Breda and Carroll programs. He forever preached that hard work and determination would always pay off!
Since 1974, Larry has been a member of Holy Spirit Parish and the Carroll Kiwanis Club and was active many years helping in so many ways. In 2012, he received the Public Service Award through the Carroll Chamber of Commerce. It’s also no surprise that Larry was an accomplished golfer himself winning many tournaments including club championships, city championships, and senior championships. Larry loved to fish in all types of weather, he loved to play cards especially Euchre, and he was an avid fan of many: Green Bay Packers, St. Louis Cardinals, Iowa Hawkeyes, and Arnold Palmer. Larry’s all-time favorite teams were the Kuemper Knights! He was a devoted Kuemper fan to all boys and girls sports! Above all of his interests came Larry’s family. He and Sharon spent countless miles and hours watching his favorite contenders of all, his fourteen grandchildren. It didn’t matter if they were golfing, playing baseball, running cross country, cheering, dancing, playing basketball, playing football, or playing soccer! He was always extremely proud of them and his family!
Larry is survived by his wife, Sharon, and their children: Jodi (Randy) Ludwig of Carroll, Michael (Mindy) Clark of Solon, Theresa (Bob) Boeckman of Breda, and Amy (Glenn) Pudenz of Lees Summit, MO. Fourteen grandchildren include: Kyler, Tanner, and Carter Ludwig, Kirby (Clark) Richman, Cody, Olivia, and Jack Clark, Miranda (Boeckman) Kalish, Austin, Brandon, and Tucker Boeckman, Hunter, Cameron, and Kennedy Pudenz; Ten great-grandchildren always brought a smile to his face! He is also survived by sisters-in-law: Carleen Clark, Janice Black and Sally Bacher and brothers-in-law: Ron Anderson and Larry Bacher; as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents and brothers, Robert and John Patrick; parents-in-law, Ronald and Evelyn Anderson. Larry was also preceded in death by his brother-in-law, Jim Black, sister-in-law, Evelyn Anderson, and niece, Cathy (Clark) Johnston.
