CLARKE--Merrie Hevrdejs, 48, died on Saturday, May 5, at the Connecticut Hospice in Branford after a courageous battle against breast cancer. Merrie remains in the hearts of her husband, Richard H. Clarke, of Westport; her brother, Frank J. Hevrdejs, of Houston and Pebble Beach, California; and her sister, Patricia M. Hevrdejs, of Portland, Oregon. Merrie was an accomplished designer with numerous high - profile projects to her credit -but her greatest source of pride was her two sons, Julian Patrick Clarke, age 12, and Sean McLean Clarke, age 10, also of Westport. She devoted countless hours to supporting them in their educational and athletic endeavors, learning to love the game of baseball, especially: She will remain, forever and always, their angel in the outfield. Merrie earned a degree in architecture from Washington University in St. Louis and worked as a senior designer at KPF Interior Architects in New York City on projects including the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and the ABC building on Columbus Avenue in Manhattan. She also worked for the Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and New York City offices of Studios Architecture, most recently as an associate principal. While living in Northern California, she established her own firm, M Interiors, as well as the Clarke Powell Design Studio, and was an instructor of design at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco. Merrie also brought her high professional standards and unstinting energy to philanthropic and volunteer work, including as a member of the boards of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company and the Headlands Center for the Arts in Sausalito, California, as well as to projects for the St. John's Episcopal Church Building Committee in Ross, California. Merrie's parents, Beatrice and Frank Hevrdejs, and sister Jill predeceased her. Merrie will be remembered with a great and eternal love by both family members and the enormous group of people lucky enough to have called her a friend. A memorial service for Merrie Hevrdejs Clarke will be held on May 18 at 1 pm at St. Bartholomew's Church in New York City. Donations in her memory may be made to the Merrie Hevrdejs and Richard H. Clarke Cancer Research Endowment with checks to the Yale Cancer Center, 157 Church Street, New Haven, CT 06510. Development Director: christopher.pates@yale.ed