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Spring Hill, Military Build a Firm Foundation
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MAGAZINE ALUMNI COLLEGE HILL SPRING THE
ECONOMICS MAJOR
(and Army Major) Learns That
PROFILE
SPRING/SUMMER 2022
MAGAZINE
ALUMNI
COLLEGE
HILL
SPRING
THE Although his choice eventually proved very useful, Joe Clark ’59 didn’t really think in practical terms when he decided to major in Economics at Spring Hill College. “It was just an interesting subject,” he said.
Thomas J. Clark III (just call him Joe) planned to go into the military for a couple of years after graduation; his Catholic education had strongly ingrained in him the concept of service. Then he would probably come back home to Memphis, Tennessee, and join The Lilly Company, the family materials-handling business. His grandfather had founded it in 1919.
“A couple of years” became 20. Clark finally retired as an Army major who had flown helicopters and a variety of fixed-wing aircraft. His spent two tours, in 1965 and 1966, piloting helicopter gunships in Vietnam.
Younger people familiar with today’s respectful “thank you for your service” interactions between civilians and military personnel may not realize how polarized the country was about the Vietnam War – or how opponents of the war sometimes took out their anger on random service members.
“You never knew when you went to town in your uniform whether somebody was going to throw something on you or spit on you,” Clark said.
When he left the Army in late 1979, his father welcomed him into The Lilly Company. Suddenly, that decision to major in Economics seemed pretty smart. Three years later, Clark became company president. Today, he’s chairman of the board, with son, Wade Clark, having taken over the presidency.
The company provides and services forklifts and supplies other products for materials handling and storage. When Joe Clark took over in 1982, it had one office located in Memphis, Tenn. Today, it has 13 locations in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas.
The attention to detail that had kept him alive while flying aircraft in combat paid off in the business world. “Everything affects business,” Clark said. He insisted that every facility, including working shops, be kept clean and organized.
“That relates to whether customers who are coming in to look at a piece of equipment or to have their forklift truck worked on have respect for you,” he said, “or not.” “I’m still a real advocate of studying economics itself and understanding what makes things flow in business,” he said, “which is the same thing as the supply chain.”
