In Memoriam
Clifford R. Oviatt, Jr.
Clifford R. "Dick" Oviatt Jr., died September 25 in Hilton Head, SC. An attorney, he was a charter member of the MTM Board of Trustees and had faxed a message to the MTM office just a few days prior to his death canceling his reservation for the semi-annual trustee meeting on September 27 due to emergency surgery. He died from complications resulting from the surgery. His fax also included a copy of a letter he had just mailed to his bishop regarding MTM's ministry. He authored MTM's model "Closure Agreement," a guide for clergy and churches in reaching a fair and healthy agreement when tenures cannot continue, and coached numerous ministers through the perils of forced termination.
A native of New Haven, CN, he moved to Hilton Head Island from Great Falls, VA, upon retirement as a senior partner at McGuire Woods of Washington, D.C. A veteran, he served in the Guadacanal Pacific campaign with the Sixth Marine Division where he was decorated for combat valor. Following military service, he played minor league baseball in the Boston Red Sox organization. President George H. W. Bush appointed him to a term on the National Labor Relations Board in 1989 where he served until 1993. He was senior warden at the All Saints Episcopal Church.
"Dick" is survived by his wife, Diana, four children and ten grandchildren.