Obituary: Renée Anne Clarke, 42, Parkdale

In Loving Memory

Renée Anne Clarke “Lou” “NiNi”

1981 - 2024

Our sweet angel, Renée Anne Clarke, left us on October 10th, 2024, at 10 a.m. at her home in Parkdale, Oregon.

Renée entered our lives on December 5th, 1981 on a beautiful rainy day, a wonderful daughter born to Kenneth and Alice Clarke (Campbell), then left us far too soon on October 10th, 2024. Though her life on earth was too short, Renée accomplished more than many people do in a full lifetime. She was a loving friend to many, an accomplished three-sport athlete in high school and champion softball player in college, and a scholar who earned her Doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology.

Renée grew up in Parkdale within a great neighborhood of friends and family: Chad, Jeremy, Kenny, Trevor, Carey, Melissa, Jackie, Jared, her brother Nate, the Mabens, Aunt Widman, the Nelsons and the Merzs. She started her athletic activities at age 3 with Rainbow Gymnastics. She soon became a soccer star, and one of Coach Ron's favorite players. In high school, she was named player of the year by her teammates. Renée also excelled in basketball, and the Hood River Valley High crowds came to watch her and her teammates play: her cousin Calli, Darci, Britney, Camile, Alli, Carrie, and many more. Renée’s favorite sport was softball, though she was named First Team All-League in all three sports.

Renée graduated from Hood River Valley High School in 2000, and went on to do her undergraduate studies at Pacific Lutheran, where she met her Best Friends, Sara and Risa, with whom she played softball. What a time they had and in 2002 won the Division Ill League Softball championship and came in 4th in the nation.

During her summers at home, Renée worked for the US Forest Service at Multnomah Falls as a grounds keeper, and learned to love hiking. On one of her Christmas Holidays, she was able to go to Germany on a psychology tour. Renée graduated from Pacific Lutheran with honors, with a degree in Psychology, and worked as a social worker for six months. She returned home for another six months, and then in 2005 was accepted for a graduate program at Carlos Albizu University in Miami, Florida.

Hello, World!

So off to Florida we went, in support of her new life there. Two days after we arrived, Hurricane Katrina hit. During the five years Renée was in Florida, that was one of the many adventures we had, along with the Miami Zoo, South Beach, the Butterfly Sanctuary, and our wonderful trip to the Keys, in the yellow convertible. While in graduate school, Renée did an Internship at the Miami Federal Correctional Institution for two years. In 2011, she received a Certification of Appreciation from their Psychology Services Department for all of her hard work and dedication. In August of 2012, Renée completed her dissertation on "Gender Stereotypes and How They Affect Sentencing of Women Who Kill," (Thank You Vicky) and graduated with a Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology, Distinction with Honors.

Renée was next off to Larned, Kansas in 2013 to start her post-doctorate work, in a State Mental Institution. Her beloved dog, Scobbie, moved with her. Upon completion of that work, she came home for a year while looking for a position, and was able to spend time with her new nephew Will and niece Hailey. Renée then accepted a position working in a State Mental Intuition in San Antionio, Texas in August 2014. There, she loved her work and new location.

Sadly, Renée was diagnosed with Huntington's Disease in March of 2015, and her health began to deteriorate. So Renée and Scobbie came home in November 2015. Our promise to Renée was she would be able to live at home with her family, and thanks to all of Christie and Nate's help, we were able to keep this promise. Back home, Renée enjoyed going to all of her nephew Will's activities (while always cheering him on), fishing (with her Father and Kelsey), seeing the horses, and spending time with her family and friends. But Renée’s health continued to deteriorate over the time from 2015 to 2024. Thankfully, we were able to have her for nine wonderful years with so much love from her kind, happy spirit.

Renée is survived by her parents Ken and Alice Clarke, brother Nate Clarke, sister-in-law Christie Clarke, nephew Will Clarke, and many loving aunts, uncles and cousins.

As Renée’s family, we would like to give a special thank you to the Caregivers who gave Renée such wonderful care: our dear Kelsey, who was with Renée the last year of her life, Morgan, Angie, Tracey, and my wonderful sister Shirley. We would  also like to thank Wendy Best for spending two hours every Saturday, for two years, reading and playing her violin for Renée. Finally, our greatest appreciation to all the many people who took time to see Renée and make her smile.

Arrangements are under the direction of Anderson's Tribute Center • 1401 Belmont Avenue, Hood River, Oregon 97031.  

Visit www.AndersonsTributeCenter.com to leave a note of condolence for the family.