Clifford Charles Missen

Clifford Charles Missen passed peacefully surrounded by family on May 14, 2025 in Durham, NC. Born in Seattle, WA in 1960 Cliff led a rather nomadic younger life – spending time in Fairbanks with his aunt and cousin, in San Francisco with his elder sister, and in Ellensburg WA with his elder brothers.

Once he reached adulthood, Cliff included sub-Saharan Africa to his travel list, spending several years developing a system of low-tech fresh water drilling to benefit the villagers of the region. When Cliff returned to the US, he taught Information Sciences as a professor at the University of Iowa and later at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. He was the director and founder of the WiderNet Project where he developed a method of sharing digital information for areas that did not have internet access, first through his eGranary non profit and later through his Chipster project

Cliff was always the life of the party, whether it was leading a drum circle or arranging the fun and games at annual church camps. While he may not always have been appropriate, he was always vastly entertaining.

Cliff is survived by his sons, Jake and Mike Missen, daughters-in-law Esther and Sarah, three grandchildren Logan, Payton, and Victor, his sisters, Marcy and Ginny, his brother, David, and many nephews, nieces and cousins.

Cliff lived life to the fullest even attending a Durham Bulls baseball game with his family in the week of his death. The world has lost a bright light and we will miss him greatly.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 24 at 2:00pm at Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 4907 Garrett Rd, Durham, NC 27707. A reception will take place in the fellowship hall following the service.