By MATT PATNEAUDE

Clark Office Products is celebrating its 50th year in Lake City. Now, a half-century after opening one of the oldest Northwest firms in the office supply industry, Clark Office Products founder Lyle Clark still makes his way into the store a few days a week.

While Clark no longer works at the store, he is a stockholder who likes to stay informed as how the business is faring. W. Frank Fadden, president of Clark Office Products, says Clark, who retired from the business in the early '90s, still maintains an office at the store.

Clark used his background as a paper salesman in opening what was then known as Clark Stationery Supply Company with his wife, Mary Jo Clark. Originally, the company focused on products such as social stationery, artist materials, greeting cards, and office supplies. Adding machines and typewriters were also sold and serviced.

Business was first conducted in a small location on Lake City Way south of NE 125th. After two years, the business moved to a larger store north of NE 125th.

In 1959, a two-story building was constructed where Clark Office Products is presently located at 12750 Lake City Way NE. For a time, Clark's occupied only two-thirds of the building while the rest of the space was leased out until Clark's business expanded to the point that it needed the entire building.

The new building was put to an immediate test in 1960 when a furniture and appliance store directly north of Clark's caught fire and was burned out. The Clark building, built to fire code, suffered some smoke damage, but came through in fairly good shape.

Focusing more of its business towards the sale of office products, commercial printing, business forms, computer supplies, and accounting systems, Clark Stationery Supply Company was renamed Clark Office Products Inc. in 1972.

Fadden began working at Clark's in 1964 as a store salesman. He later moved into outside sales and then management, working with the company's sales representatives to develop territory throughout Washington and Alaska. In 1990, Fadden became president of Clark Office Products.

The Clark building was purchased from Lyle Clark by the corporation in 1978 and enlarged by 3,500 square feet to the building's present size. Since then, the most dramatic change has been the expansion of the printing department to include the entire lower level of the original building.

Beginning with just a staff of two, co-founders/owners Lyle and Mary Jo Clark, the company has grown to its present staff of 15 employees. While Lyle Clark may be the oldest old-timer around the store, Fadden says that the average employee has been with the company for 17 years.

"There are a lot of old-timers here," says Fadden.