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We are sad to announce the death of Clay M. Spicer, who passed away on June 1, 2024, in Birmingham, Alabama at the age of 67.

Born in Wichita, Kansas, Clay was a graduate of Montevallo High School and went on to study at the University of Montevallo. As a proud Navy veteran, he was stationed on the USS Constitution from 1977 to 1980 as a Yeoman.

A later diagnosis of schizophrenia didn’t hinder him from living a full and adventurous life. Clay was constant in his pursuit of knowledge and the arts and was a proponent of life-long learning. He loved music, playing bass in a high school garage band, and, later, playing acoustic guitar for his kids in the kitchen. He instilled the same love of music in his children, filling the home with the sounds of the Beatles, Elton John, and big band music. He loved storytelling and literature and was a hobby author and filmmaker. Clay studied French, living for a while in France and in Quebec. He was also proficient in German, Japanese, and Italian. He loved to travel and explore, traveling most recently to Italy. He was an avid sailor, sailing with the Boston Harbor Sailing Club and earning the Master Sailor certification. Many summer weekends and vacations were spent aboard the family’s 39’ Hunter sailboat, sailing around Boston Harbor, down to Cape Cod and Rhode Island, and, at one point, sailing from Massachusetts to Florida.

Clay was preceded in death by his parents, John and Shirley. He leaves behind two children, Michael Spicer (Jasmine) and Erica Lucas (Gary), four grandchildren, siblings Noel, Anita, Shawn, Paul, Erin, and Elaine, and multiple cousins, nieces, and nephews.

A committal service will be held at the Alabama National Cemetery for friends and family to attend on Thursday, July 11, 2024 at 11:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) on Clay’s behalf. Donations may be sent online at namibham.org or via mail to NAMI Birmingham, PO Box 550039, Birmingham, AL 35255-0039.