Ray L. Clark was born in 1923 in Missouri. He resided in Washington County, Wisconsin prior to the war. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps on September 11, 1942 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was noted, at the time of his enlistment, as being employed in the fabrication of metal products and also as Single, without dependents. Ray served as a Staff Sergeant and Asst. Radio Operator / Gunner on B-24D #42-40845, 425th Bomber Squadron, 308th Bomber Group, Heavy, U.S. Army Air Force during World War II.

B-24D #42-40845 took off, with a crew of 10, from Kunming, China on a combat mission over Hankow, China. They were shot down by Japanese fighter planes. The crew was given the order to bailout due to extreme damage. Six members of the crew were lost. He was declared "Missing in Action" on August 24, 1943 and is commemorated on the Walls of the Missing, Manila American Cemetery, Taguig City, Philippines.

Ray was one of over 2000 Americans who lost their lives defending China from their Japanese invaders from 1941-1945. He is also commemorated on the The Monument to the Aviation Martyrs in the War of Resistance Against Japan in Nanjing, China.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov