Ernest Edward Clement, husband and father, farmer, and Korean War veteran, passed in San Luis Obispo on October 25. He was 98.

Mr. Clement was the eldest son of Alva Clement and Ethel Thayer Clement. He was born at home on August 12, 1925, in King City, California. His father was a farmer and his mother a homemaker.

He graduated from King City High School in 1943.

A veteran of the United States Navy during the Korean War, he served on the USS Cavalier APA-37, a Bayfield-class attack and troop transport ship. On the USS Cavalier he worked in the evaporators and was the engineman on landing craft. He made two trips across the Pacific Ocean transporting soldiers to and from Korea. Several decades later, while comparing military service stories with a King City High School teacher, the two men realized that both had been on the USS Cavalier at the same time: Mr. Clement as a member of the crew and the teacher (then a U.S. Army infantryman) en route to the Korean War theatre.

During the late 1950s he earned a bachelor's degree in agronomy from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California.

In 1959, Mr. Clement married Roberta Wolf, an elementary school teacher. They had three children.

The Clements were parishioners at the Community Baptist Church and, later, at Grace Lutheran Church, both in King City, California.

Excepting his tenure in the U.S. Navy and at California Polytechnic State University, between 1943 and 1980, Mr. Clement farmed the land north of King City High School and the King City Cemetery and east of the now San Lorenzo County Park. He did so in partnership, "A.L. Clement and Sons," with his father and younger brother, Harold Clement, and then later as a sole proprietor. He and they raised lettuce and other table vegetables, sugar beets, and dry beans. He retired from farming in 1980.

From the early 1970s until his death, Mr. Clement owned and operated residential apartments on King City.

Roberta Clement died in 1994. In 2000, Mr. Clement moved to Arroyo Grande, California, to be near his children and grandchildren.

His son, Fredrick Clement, described him this way: "My father was a God-fearing man, a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, a successful farmer, and a gentle soul."

He is survived by three children: Fredrick (Marnee) Clement; Scott (Kerin) Clement; and Jill (Craig) Von Ilten. He is also survived by eight grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.

A Graveside Service will be held at 11am on Saturday, November 18, 2023 at King City District Cemetery.

For more information, please contact Eddington Funeral Services, 429 Bassett St., King City, (831) 385-5400,