The Demise of Pastor Ron Clark and Who Is Laughing Now?

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Tampa church imperiled by pastors' bitter divorce
St. Petersburg Times; St. Petersburg, Fla.; Jun 1, 2003; JEFF TESTERMAN;

Abstract:
The allegations derive from an affidavit filed by Linda Gestrin, [Ronald Clark]'s sister. Gestrin said he revealed his plan to her in a phone call in February, saying [Belinda Clark] was "crazy" and "out of control," and adding that his plan would cut Belinda out of alimony, leaving her "half of nothing."

[Jack Hoogewind] says in court documents that the church never deducted Social Security or Medicare payments from her paycheck, nor paid any money into the Social Security system on her behalf. Instead, Hoogewind says, Ronald Clark told Belinda that the church was paying into a retirement fund for her in lieu of payments to Social Security.

Ronald Clark filed for divorce when Belinda was fired, saying she tried to ruin his credibility at the church. Ronald Clark also said his wife had made "delusional claims" that he was attempting to kill her after taking out a $1-million life insurance policy on her.
Full Text:
Copyright Times Publishing Co. Jun 1, 2003
Fifteen years ago, the Rev. Ronald Clark and his wife, Belinda, brought their evangelical fervor, organizational talent and youthful good looks to the task of founding the Living Water Church of Tampa.
They started in a Holiday Inn meeting room with five members. The charismatic Christian church ultimately grew to a congregation of more than a thousand, big enough to spin off an international relief mission.
The growth sent the church from a storefront to a warehouse to the $5-million cluster of buildings off Interstate 4, where church services today are advertised by a flashing electronic sign.
But good times have given way to turmoil at the Living Water Church.
A rancorous divorce proceeding between the Clarks has chased away parishioners, undermined church finances and left its future in doubt.
The marital discord has lawyers filing papers in two counties.
The Clarks' conflict has spawned a domestic violence petition, a criminal complaint about missing church donations, a slander suit, a lien on the church to prevent its sale and a lawsuit aimed at dissolving that lien.
"Hopefully for the church, the anger will settle down," said Arnold Levine, a Tampa lawyer representing Ronald Clark. "But if this is going to be the battle of the ages, I'm sure the church is going to be impacted."
At the center of the dispute is the valuable church property. Belinda Clark has taken the unusual action of asking a judge to declare the property a marital asset, so that she can share in the distribution of funds earned from the property.
Her success would likely end the Living Water Church in its current location, and might trigger landmark tax consequences.
Tax exemptions in peril
The church property is owned by a tax-exempt, nonprofit corporation and run by a board of trustees.
If the property is determined to be an asset of the Clarks, church leaders worry, then its tax exemption might be void, and the exemption for all donations to the church over the years might be void, too.
Levine discounts that possibility.
"It's just absurd," he says. "The church is in the title of the nonprofit, and no one has any ownership interest but the nonprofit. It's for the benefit of the parishioners."
Nonetheless, Belinda Clark's Dade City attorney, Jack Hoogewind, has asked for an emergency hearing next week to consider a motion to freeze the church's assets so a judge can determine if the Living Water Church is a marital asset.
Hoogewind claims in court papers that Ronald Clark had a secret plan to sell the church, then place the proceeds in a trust that would feed him money in a ministry he would establish out of the country.
The allegations derive from an affidavit filed by Linda Gestrin, Ronald Clark's sister. Gestrin said he revealed his plan to her in a phone call in February, saying Belinda Clark was "crazy" and "out of control," and adding that his plan would cut Belinda out of alimony, leaving her "half of nothing."
Levine said Gestrin's claims are baseless and that she was in adispute with Ronald Clark over some personal effects. Levine also said the church for some months has considered selling its I-4 property to move to a more family-friendly location in the suburbs.
Ronald Clark, 46, known as "Reverend Ron" to his congregation, moved to the Living Water Church's current location 10 years ago. He is the founder of Global Medical Relief, a humanitarian mission that built a hospital in China and clinics in Haiti, according to the church's Web site.
Rev. Clark, who received a doctorate from Oral Roberts University, is the author of Sailing Through the Storms of Life and Can a Christian Love a Muslim? He presided over the memorial service for Hillsborough State Attorney Harry Lee Coe at the Living Water Church in July 2000.
Belinda Clark, 41, served as an associate pastor at the Living Water Church for 10 years, but was fired from her $70,000-a-year job by the board of trustees in March.
Hoogewind says in court documents that the church never deducted Social Security or Medicare payments from her paycheck, nor paid any money into the Social Security system on her behalf. Instead, Hoogewind says, Ronald Clark told Belinda that the church was paying into a retirement fund for her in lieu of payments to Social Security.
Belinda Clark says she was assured by the church board that her retirement account had grown to $300,000, but she says she's received none of those funds and now believes the money was diverted to pay for the acquisition of church assets.
'Delusional claims'
Ronald Clark filed for divorce when Belinda was fired, saying she tried to ruin his credibility at the church. Ronald Clark also said his wife had made "delusional claims" that he was attempting to kill her after taking out a $1-million life insurance policy on her.
Later, Living Water Church officials alleged Belinda Clark had illegally diverted church mail for some weeks around Easter, depriving the church of thousands of dollars in mail-in contributions during the biggest donation time of the year.
According to an April 28 complaint with the sheriff's office by Richard C. Barker Jr., an associate pastor at Living Water Church, Belinda Clark completed a change-of-address form to divert all church mail to her Dade City post office box, even though she was no longer on the church board.
The mail diversion complaint remains under criminal investigation, Hillsborough sheriff's officials said last week. Levine said the missing mail created a financial hardship for the church.
In her counter-petition in the divorce case, Belinda Clark seeks custody of the couple's two children, the proceeds from the Living Water Church and title to the marital home in Dade City, a $322,966 estate on Fort King Road that includes a 3,618-square-foot home and an 8-acre horse farm.
In the counter-petition, Belinda Clark says her husband slandered her during services at the Living Water Church by telling others she was mentally ill, guilty of adultery and morally unfit to be an associate pastor.
In seeking a temporary restraining order against her husband, Belinda Clark told a Pasco County sheriff's deputy that her husband had threatened her and said, "I hope you enjoy living in hell."
Mrs. Clark said she feared for her safety because he kept 13 guns in the home.
She also told the deputy that her husband was under investigation by the Hillsborough Sheriff's Office, where Ronald Clark is employed as chaplain and reserve deputy.
Records show Clark took a 90-day voluntary leave of absence from the sheriff's office beginning March 31. But there is no record of an internal affairs investigation of Clark, according to an April 9 letter from Maj. Richard Cipriano of the sheriff's human resources division.
Neither Ronald Clark nor Belinda Clark would discuss these matters on the record with the St. Petersburg Times.
On May 23, the couple appeared in a court hearing in Dade City to offer testimony in a petition for a permanent domestic violence injunction sought by Mrs. Clark.
Belinda Clark wore a gray busi-ness suit. Ronald Clark was in a gold blazer, monogrammed blue shirt and cuff links. The couple might have passed for Fortune 500 business executives. They did not speak to one another.
Instead, they wrinkled their brows and winced at testimony about their messy divorce.
Threats and lawsuits
Psychologist Timothy Foster, a $250-an-hour counselor paid by the church to see the Clarks, said he saw so much anger "that it became obvious to me this was going to resolve not in the counseling room but in divorce court."
Ronald Clark gritted his teeth as he was asked to recount what his wife had said to him in a March phone call.
"She said she would crush my head, she said she would cut off my b----, she said she would f------ destroy me," Ronald Clark testified.
Barker, the associate pastor, told of accompanying Ronald Clark to his home to pick up belongings that Mrs. Clark had placed on the porch in a driving rain. Boxes had become so saturated they split. The children were "hysterical," Barker said, and Ronald Clark "was weeping the whole time he was loading up."
Belinda Clark said she'd had no support for the children. The electricity would be turned off that afternoon if a $700 bill weren't paid, she said.
After a break, the couple adjourned to a conference room with their attorneys to talk.
They emerged with an agreement to drop the domestic violence petition and to share custody of the children. Ronald Clark promised to pay the electric bill by 5 p.m.
But reconciliation does not appear imminent.
Six days later, the Living Water Church sued Hoogewind and Belinda Clark in Hillsborough Circuit Court, saying they had improperly placed a lien on the church.
The same day, Hoogewind filed the papers in Dade City that claimed Ronald Clark had a secret plan to sell the church and leave the country.
- Times researcher John Martin contributed to this report. Jeff Testerman can be reached at (813) 226-3422 or by e-mail at testerman@sptimes.com
[Illustration]
Caption: Living Water Church of Tampa, exterior; The Rev. Ronald Clark; Photo: PHOTO, FRASER HALE; PHOTO

Sub Title: [SOUTH PINELLAS Edition]
Start Page: 1B
Dateline: TAMPA

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.

Living Water pastor vows not to flee
St. Petersburg Times; St. Petersburg, Fla.; Jun 3, 2003; JEFF TESTERMAN;

Abstract:
Clark's move was in response to a request by his wife, Belinda Clark, that a judge prevent the sale of the $5-million church property on Interstate 4 in Hillsborough County. Based on a purported call from [Ronald Clark] to his sister, Mrs. Clark says in court papers that her husband has a secret plan to sell the church, place the proceeds in a trust and leave the country.

Co-founders of the Living Water Church of Tampa 15 years ago, Ronald and Belinda Clark are now mired in a rancorous divorce that threatens the future of the nondenominational Christian church. Mrs. Clark has taken the unusual action of asking that the church be declared a marital asset so that she can share in the distribution of its proceeds.

Until fired from her pastoral position three months ago, Mrs. Clark was paid $70,000 annually. Ronald Clark last year received a salary of $68,000 and a housing allowance of $70,000.
Full Text:
Copyright Times Publishing Co. Jun 3, 2003
Living Water Church pastor Ronald Clark agreed to surrender his passport to his attorney Monday to allay fears that he intends to take church assets and leave the country.
Clark's move was in response to a request by his wife, Belinda Clark, that a judge prevent the sale of the $5-million church property on Interstate 4 in Hillsborough County. Based on a purported call from Ronald Clark to his sister, Mrs. Clark says in court papers that her husband has a secret plan to sell the church, place the proceeds in a trust and leave the country.
Co-founders of the Living Water Church of Tampa 15 years ago, Ronald and Belinda Clark are now mired in a rancorous divorce that threatens the future of the nondenominational Christian church. Mrs. Clark has taken the unusual action of asking that the church be declared a marital asset so that she can share in the distribution of its proceeds.
On a financial affidavit, Mrs. Clark has listed as an asset the couple's interest in the Living Water Church and Ron Clark Ministries, a related nonprofit, but says she is uncertain of its value.
Arnold Levine, Ronald Clark's attorney, said Monday that the church was actually purchased with the funds of church members through a church bond. His conclusion: Neither of the Clarks can own any of the Living Water Church corporation.
To deflect the move to freeze church assets, Levine offered for his client to give up his passport, a suggestion adopted by Family Law Judge Linda Babb.
"(Ronald Clark) has no intention of leaving the country," Levine told Babb. "My client isn't going anywhere."
The divorce proceeding promises to provide a rare glimpse into the finances of the Living Water Church, which, as a nonprofit religious institution, is not required to file a tax return nor make other public disclosure.
Until fired from her pastoral position three months ago, Mrs. Clark was paid $70,000 annually. Ronald Clark last year received a salary of $68,000 and a housing allowance of $70,000.
That allowed the couple to own an estate on Fort King Road in Dade City valued at $500,000, according to Mrs. Clark's financial affidavit. Records show the couple took out $450,000 in mortgages on the 3,618-square-foot home and horse farm a year ago. The couple also own a second home in Celebration worth $275,000.
Monday, Levine said the bitter divorce was damaging church finances, causing many members to seek religious guidance elsewhere. He indicated Ronald Clark had not drawn a paycheck in weeks.
"The church has started losing its contributions," Levine said. "The reason there's a question about the sale of the church now is that there's a question about whether they can make their mortgage payment."
Mrs. Clark claims she had no Social Security deductions from her paychecks for 10 years nor any Social Security contributions from the church. She says she was told by her husband that a retirement account was set up for her in lieu of those payments, and that it had grown to $300,000. But Mrs. Clark says she has not seen that money and believes it was used for the acquisition of church assets.
Mrs. Clark, through attorney Jack Hoogewind, has asked for an accounting for that retirement fund, as well as for details of all church loans to Ronald Clark.
Judge Babb deferred any ruling on freezing church assets. In the meantime, she clarified a previous order forbidding either of the Clarks or their attorneys from speaking to the media.
Clark's previous attorney, Dennis Alfonso, had initially asked for that restraint, saying publicity might harm the Living Water Church.
Judge Babb said she was more concerned about a divorce spectacle hurting the Clarks' two children.
"I believe this is a private matter," she said.
- Jeff Testerman can be reached at 226-3422 or by e-mail at testerman@sptimes.
[Illustration]
Caption: Living Water Church pastor Ronald Clark (ran CITY & STATE, METRO & STATE); Photo: PHOTO

Sub Title: [LATE TAMPA Edition]
Start Page: 3B
Dateline: DADE CITY

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Accusations Fly Between Pastor, Wife
By MISSY STODDARD mstoddard@tampatrib.com
Published: Jun 20, 2003

DADE CITY - She says her husband has branded her a thief and an adulteress and won't financially support her and their two children.

He says his wife's actions have cost him his salary and more than half the membership of his congregation.

Ronald and Belinda Clark, pastor and former associate pastor of Living Water Church in Tampa, spent more than two hours Thursday in a judge's chambers testifying about the most personal details of their life and finances.

The couple, in the throes of a bitter divorce, were there on a motion Belinda Clark filed to compel her husband to temporarily support her and the children, who are living in the family's $500,000 Dade City home and horse farm but don't have money to buy groceries, according to her attorney, Jack Hoogewind.

``It's a starve-her-out mentality,'' said Hoogewind, referring to Ronald Clark's assertion that he's broke.

His attorney, Arnold Levine, insisted Clark ``has no money'' and has paid $25,000 to his wife since the first of the year.

``He's living on borrowed money,'' Levine said. ``He has no funds. I've only been paid by third-party money.''

The hearing, to resume next month, ended Thursday with Pasco Circuit Court Judge Linda Babb ordering Clark to borrow whatever money he could to give his wife $2,000 by this afternoon. Belinda Clark seeks at least $7,000 a month for her and her children.

Ronald Clark, 46, filed for divorce from his wife of 24 years in March, shortly after the church's board of trustees fired Belinda Clark, 41, from her $70,000 a year job as associate pastor and principal of the Living Water school.

On Thursday, she testified that some time afterward, her husband stood before his congregation and claimed he had ``biblical grounds'' for a divorce.

Hoogewind argued that ``biblical grounds'' is church- speak for adultery.

When he took the stand, Ronald Clark challenged that assertion. He picked up a Bible and leafed through it, quoting from Exodus, 1 Corinthians, Matthew and Romans. Clark said those passages allow for a biblical divorce in situations of indecency, lack of emotional support, physical cruelty, refusal of sex and sexual perversion.

Clark accused his wife of downloading ``hard-core pornographic videos'' from their home satellite dish. Asked by Hoogewind whether the videos could have been downloaded by the couple's teenage son, Clark responded: ``I have seen her watch pornographic movies.''

Melvin Myer, a trustee at Living Water who testified for Ronald Clark, said church membership has plunged from 1,286 in January to 444 in May. Tithes and offerings are down $67,000 since January, Myer said. He blamed the loss on Belinda Clark's ``malicious and slanderous'' actions that ``have caused people to be insecure and leave the church.''

Myer said Living Water owes $118,000 in past-due bills, including the church's $19,500 mortgage payment. Staff has been let go and Ronald Clark is not drawing his $70,000 salary or his tax-exempt $78,000 housing allowance, Myer said. He denied knowledge of an alleged ``scam'' to hide money for Ronald Clark.

Living Water moved to its current location off Interstate 4 in 1993. The church occupies 16 acres and a 26,000-square-foot building.

In a 1996 Tampa Tribune story, Clark characterized his flock as middle- to higher-income baby boomers, who at that time gave more than $2 million annually to support the church.