Clarence "Larry" D. Bell

Clarence D. (Larry) Bell passed away January 15, 2025, at his home.

Larry was born in Sylvester, Georgia on March 19, 1931, son of James Lenwood Bell and Hilda Denby Bell.

He was raised on Long Island in New York City and Savannah, Georgia, where he graduated High School.

Larry joined the Marine Corps Reserve after graduation and was activated early in the Korean War. He was a survivor of the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. He was wounded twice. The second time he was sent home and hospitalized in Jacksonville, Florida.

After discharge, he attended Armstrong College in Savannah, transferring to Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina, where he received a degree in ceramic engineering.

Larry was hired by Champion Spark Plug Co. and came to work at the plant in Cambridge. He left Champion to attend graduate School at The Ohio State University. After attending OSU, he was hired by Westinghouse Bettis Atomic Plant in the Pittsburgh area, exploring the idea of ceramic materials in the core of nuclear reactors in nuclear submarines.

Champion was growing at the time and rehired Larry. He was involved with design and construction of the new ceramic plants in Detroit and Burlington, Iowa. Larry also worked on the plant design for the new ceramic plant to be built in England. Larry maintained an office at the plant in Cambridge and ended his career working on the foreign plants in Mexico and Venezuela.

He retired from Champion in1993 and worked part-time for the Ceramic Manufacturers Association and did consulting work for the Longaberger Basket Company when they started manufacturing their dishes.

Larry was honored as a Fellow of the American Ceramic Society and was proud of being a registered professional engineer in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. He served in various capacities on the Board of Trustees at Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center for over twenty years.

Larry is survived by his wife of sixty-five years, Carol, and a large family in Georgia. He was a member of Christ Our Light Parish.

Funeral services will be held on March 3, 2025, at Christ Our Light Parish in Cambridge with Mass starting at 11AM. Memorial donations can be made to a charity of your choice.