Parker Robert Redman

Parker Redman died Saturday morning. He was a native of Austin, a junior at Rice University, and an all-around fine human being. The world had Parker for only twenty years, but he left his mark. He had personality and style, traits that became apparent when he was very small. At age three, he was playing with his brother, Philip, and a five-year-old friend. The friend cried, “I’m He-Man, and I fight with Battle Cat!” Philip chimed in, “I’m Flash Gordon, and I kill ice robots!” And Parker said, “And I’m . . . I’ll be the lawyer.” Once when he was four years old and playing in the front yard, his parents went to check on him and found him happily taping ants to the sidewalk. Parker attended Austin public schools: Highland Park Elementary, Lamar Middle School, Kealing Junior High, and McCallum High School, where his favorite memories were his American history class and a spring-break trip to Italy with his fellow Latin students. He loved animals, his thirteen-year-old Honda Accord, anything involving hazelnuts or chocolate, and all kinds of music and movies. (Once, watching an old sci-fi flick with him, a friend commented, “This isn’t even a B-movie-it’s a C-movie.” To which Parker replied, “I think they were making it Pass/Fail.”) He despised, among other things, snobs, bullies, and the year of band he suffered through playing an instrument he dubbed the “assoon.” He was a self-taught computer whiz, having earned pocket money from age thirteen on as a neighborhood Mr. Cyber-Fix-it. In high school he and a friend built a trebuchet that worked alarmingly well. Two years ago he cut off his ponytail-all eleven inches of it-and donated it to Locks of Love. He was proud to be a fifth-generation Texan who was one-quarter Hispanic as well as one of nine family members who attended Rice University. His future plans had included a post-graduation ramble around Europe and Asia, teaching science and math to elementary-school students, and the adoption of infant girls from China. Parker is survived by his mother, Anne Dingus; his father, Patrick Redman; and his brother and best friend, Phil Redman. Other grieving family members include his grandparents, Isela Romero Redman of El Paso and Mr. & Mrs. G. W. Dingus of Pampa; many aunts and uncles, including Kati and David Timmons of Austin (his second parents); Jane Dingus and John Hildebrandt of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina; Nancy Crites of Hannover, Germany; Joe Crites of Hannover, Germany; Bill and Mary Anne Dingus of Midland; and Bobbo Redman of Durango, Colorado. He loved his wealth of cousins: Joseph Timmons of Austin; Katherine Hildebrandt of Houston; Dayton Crites of San Francisco; Caroline Crites of Houston; Margaret Crites of Waco; Lizby, Paul, and Mariah Dingus of Midland; Sam Redman of Durango; and Sean, Joy, Elizabeth, and Julia Hildebrandt of Portland, Oregon. Honorary family includes Tristan Letscher of Austin and the Hudson-Zirl family of Alberton, Montana. Parker also had many long-time loving and caring friends. He was predeceased by his uncle Michael Redman and his grandfather Robert E. Redman. Visitation will be Wednesday morning from 10 a.m. to noon at Weed-Corley-Fish funeral home, 3125 N. Lamar. As Parker would have wished, this will be a strictly secular, casual, drop-in-and-out event. Everyone is welcome. Private family-only interment will follow at Austin Memorial Park. To everyone kind enough to think of sending flowers, please consider instead donations for the Parker Redman Memorial Fund, c/o Baker College Masters, Baker College, Rice University, 6320 Main St., Houston, TX, 77005. Parker, it hasn’t yet sunk in that you are gone. We love you, good boy. May you have the finest laptop in heaven, plus a celestial supply of music and games. And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest. Obituary and guestbook online at wcfish.com