William Kerr (Bill) Clement had a lifetime of service to the United States military, serving both his employer and his profession in an exemplary manner. He grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, attending Franklin and Marshall College and graduating with a degree in History and Science from Millersville State College in 1955. He went on to attend Temple University, earning a Masters Degree in Psychology and Recreation in 1960. 

 

His early working career was as a teacher and coach at the high school and college level in his home state. He began his career with the military as Assistant Special Services Officer and Recreation Director at the Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay Cuba in 1963. He went on the serve as the Chief, Sports and Recreation Division for XVIII Airborne at Ft. Bragg, NC in 1967. He left the Army in 1968 and spent the balance of his working life with the Navy. He served as Senior Field Representative with the Chief of Naval Personnel from 1968 to 1972. He was Head of the Navy Recreation Management School at Patuxent River, Maryland from 1972 to 1976. He served as Director of Recreational Services and the Director of Morale, Welfare and Recreation at Naval Station Charleston, SC from 1976 until his retirement in January 1995.

 

His professional associations and awards were many. He was a member of the National Recreation and Park Association from 1967 until his retirement. He served as a member of the NRPA National Forum, the Registration Board, the Election Board, the Board of Trustees, and the National Council on Accreditation. He was also an active member of the Armed Forces Recreation Society and was its president in 1977/78. 

 

He earned the AFRS Executive Fellow Award in 1975 and its Distinguished Fellow Award in 1987. He was elected to the American Academy for Parks and Recreation Administration in 1986. The Armed Forces Recreation Society awarded Mr. Clement its Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996.

 

Bill died in Charleston, SC, April 21, 2001. He and is survived by his wife, Eva, and four children, William Kerr Clement, Jr., Jon Marshal Clement, Mark Franklin Clement, and Cheryl Ann Clement.  

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