Clarice Ruth Jones Lipinski Obituary (1938 - 2006)

Born Apr 14, 1938, Clarice Ruth Jones Lipinski attended Stanton County High School in Johnson, KS. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about Clarice Ruth Jones Lipinski.

Graduation Year	Class of 1956
Date of Birth	Apr 14, 1938
Date of Passing	Mar 22, 2006
About	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/43204360/clarice-ruth-lipinski
Events	Clarice graduated from Stanton County Community High School, Johnson, Kansas, in 1956, and received her bachelor of arts degree in music from Friends University, Wichita, Kansas, in 1963. In college, she was a member of Mu Phi Epsilon music fraternity and was a member of the university's choir, the Singing Quakers. After moving to Bay Terrace in 1971, she began providing piano lessons to Island youngsters. She became affectionately known by hundreds of students as The Great Lipinski. Over the years, Clarice's piano music graced many church services, weddings, bar/bat mitzvah parties and holiday celebrations. She retired in 2001 to Margate, Florida, after 30 years of service. For many years, the piano enthusiast and Christian woman volunteered at the Salvation Army Church in Stapleton as a secretary, assisting with the church's service music and playing Christmas songs at the St. George ferry terminal with the bell ringers.nnAt one time she donated a piano she brought from Kansas after learning that the Salvation Army's piano had been vandalized. She had a passion for Native Americans and carried on the task her parents began decades ago to provide Christmas gifts for children of destitute families living on Indian reservations in South Dakota. She refurbished thousands of dolls and toys, and crocheted scarves, blankets and other warm items. For a number of years, each November, the UPS truck would stop by her home to pick up about 50-80 large boxes to be delivered to the reservations. She even made sure 50 boxes of gifts were shipped in November, after she was already very ill. In her leisure time, she played the banjo and often attended "pickin' parties" and participated in the celebration of the reopening and centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty in 1986. She also liked knitting and crocheting and took part in competitive ballroom dancing. She did much of the restoration of her Victorian home and antique furniture. The commander of the Salvation Army's Stapleton Corps said, "Mrs. Lipinski has left the world a special legacy. While I never met her in person, I have shared a piece of her life every time I listen to one of her students play."