SEARCY — Some employees at Hancock Fabrics in Searcy said Melanie Joann Clark is the best boss for whom they have ever worked. Family members point out how generous and strong-willed she is. That is why the community has rallied around Clark to offer support in her time of need.
Clark has been a manager at Hancock Fabrics for a long time, family member Melinda Hart said. Clark’s enthusiasm for sewing and her passion for helping others made a career at the fabric store a perfect fit for her.
“She loved working with fabric and with the little ladies who came in,” Hart said. “That was just right up her alley.”
This spring, Clark started to experience flulike symptoms. She would become exhausted after just a few hours at work, and she ached by the end of the day. Hart said it took some convincing, but Clark finally went to the doctor. Her family was shocked when she was diagnosed with leukemia on May 20.
“We were all just floored,” Hart said. “This has just been a whirlwind to us all.”
Two days after her diagnosis, Clark went to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Medical Center in Little Rock to undergo treatment. She was there until July 21 — her birthday — when doctors told her there was nothing else they could do for her.
“In the beginning, they were talking about bone marrow. They did three rounds of chemo, and none of it helped,” Hart said. “They gave her the choice to stay at the hospital or go home, and she told them she wanted to be home.”
Clark is now in hospice care at home. Last week, Hart said, Clark was still “holding her own.”
“They tried to put her straw in her mouth, and she told them she would do it,” Hart said.
Clark had also been caring for her two grandsons, ages 13 and 16, who lived with her, and Hart said arrangements have been made for the teens to live with their father.
At this point, Hart said, the family has a realistic view of the situation. Doctors have told them there is nothing else to do to treat her illness, and the family is working to make sure Clark is comfortable and without worry. The family set up an account at First Security Bank to offset the cost of her medical care, her current expenses and funeral costs that will be incurred.
“Any donations are going to be used for a plot, a service and a headstone. And we also have her rent and utilities, since she can’t work. We’re just trying to keep her afloat at this point,” Hart said. “We don’t want her last days to be [spent] worrying about bills.”
To donate to the account, people just need to go to a branch of First Security Bank and tell someone there they would like to give to the Melanie Joann Clark Fund.
At this point, Hart said, there is no set goal for the donations. Any amount will help, and it will all be utilized for Clark’s care.
“If they can give $5, that’s great,” Hart said. “If they can give more, that’s good, too.”
Hart said the family has reports of where all of the donated money goes in case donors want to check and make sure the funds are going toward Clark’s care.
Despite Clark’s prognosis, Hart said, family members are holding onto hope that things could turn around for her.
“We’re still praying for a miracle,” Hart said. “God could still heal her.”
Staff writer Angela Spencer can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or aspencer@arkansasonline.com.