LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Larry Clark is turning 75 on March 8, and his daughter Mattea has one simple goal: 75 birthday cards for a man she calls her hero.
Mattea Clark, who is active-duty military, recently moved back to Lexington, choosing orders closer to home to be near her father.
"I just moved back from Washington state, and I chose orders out here because I wanted to be closer to my dad, and I just wanted to do a very kind gesture for him because he means so much to me," Mattea said.
Larry is a Vietnam veteran who served in the military, worked 26 years as a mail carrier and spent another decade as a school bus driver.
"He's had a life full of many experiences, but with much knowledge and just a lot of experiences to share," Mattea said.
After losing her mother in 2019, Larry and Mattea leaned on each other even more.
"It was back in 2019 when I first joined the Navy. So, it was a little tough for both of us," Mattea said.
Mattea was adopted from China after her parents spent years trying to grow their family.
"They were able to fly over to China to go get me and explore because the story was my mother, my birth mother, left me in a basket at a bus station," Mattea said.
She describes her father as a simple man with simple pleasures.
"He likes fishing. He likes food. And he likes watching TV," Mattea said.
But for Mattea, her father is anything but ordinary.
"Being a female in the military and I think the first female in my family serving is something to be very proud of and my dad is extremely proud of my service, and he's definitely somebody I look up to," Mattea said.
For a man who, by his daughter's account, has everything and wants nothing, Mattea says the cards are about something deeper.
"For a man who has everything and wants nothing, why not do something? I mean that's more meaningful," Mattea said.
To give Larry a birthday card, you message Mattea on Facebook.
