Bill Parker

Bill Parker died at McKee Medical Center on January 13th. Bill was born to John P. Parker and Cora Faye Manos Parker in Denver on October 2, 1942. He graduated from LaSalle High School and attended Colorado State University before deciding on a career with the Union Pacific Railroad as a conductor. Upon his retirement from the railroad, he purchased the Intrigue Gift Shop in Estes Park and was a successful businessman for some years before selling the shop to his daughter, Robin. Bill lived all his life in Colorado, except for his tour of duty in the Army where he served his country in Vietnam and Korea.

Bill married Earlene Dart on April 1, 2000. They moved from Estes Park to Loveland in 2007. Bill is survived by his wife, Earlene, and their children, Robin Parker (Greg Pollak) of Loveland, Christopher Parker (Jennifer) of Thornton, Donald Dart (Melinda) of Highlands Ranch, and Ronald Dart (Jody) of Ken Caryl Valley. He is also deeply missed by his grandchildren, Casey, Cara, and Carter Dart and Bryce and Olivia Parker. His siblings are Phyllis Kennemer and Linda Yackey of Loveland, Dennis Parker of Arvada, and Ralph and Roy Parker of Fort Collins.

Bill enjoyed travel. He and Earlene went on many road trips and cruises, often accompanied by their children and grandchildren. Bill loved the mountains and outdoor activities. He liked to hike, camp, and fish. He also collected a wide variety of model railroad trains and displayed them in his home.

Bill was not associated with any organized religion, but he was deeply spiritual. He read many books about spirituality and was especially impressed with the insights revealed in The Celestine Prophecy.

Cremation has been completed in compliance with his wishes. A memorial service will be held at Allnutt Funeral Service in Loveland on Sunday, January 18, 2015, at 1:30 p.m. Go to www.allnutt.com to sign the guestbook and send condolences.

Bill Parker Eulogy

by

Phyllis Kennemer

The family asked me to do the eulogy for Bill because I knew him the longest. And that is true. I knew him his whole life and I do not remember any time in my life when Bill was not there. I always knew I could count on him.

We went to the same small high school together. He was there when I graduated. I was there when he graduated two years later and then we attended high school reunions together every five years for fifty years.

Bill was there when I started dating in college. He and I double-dated. My first boyfriend did not have a reliable car and Bill would take us from LaSalle to Denver with him when he was courting Carole. The four of us would go to a movie or something and then Bill would drive us back to LaSalle.

He was there when I graduated from college and moved to Colorado Springs to begin a teaching career. We wrote long letters back and forth to each other while he served in the Army. His handwriting was really tiny so he could squeeze a lot of information on those tissue-thin blue airmail pages.

He was not at my wedding. He was in Vietnam. But he and Bob became good friends when he got back home. When Bob was awarded a fellowship to study at Stanford University, Bill and Carole used our furniture so we did not have to pay for a year of storage.

Bill was there when Bob died after our 29 years of marriage. He was single at the time and living in Estes Park. I was here in Loveland. During that first year of my widowhood, he came down at least once a week to take me out to dinner or do something. He also invited me up there to go hiking in the mountains and experience the healing effects of nature.

We all rejoiced when Bill brought Earlene into our lives. He was keeping busy managing his gift shop in downtown Estes Park and he loved living in the midst of nature in his glass house on a mountain side, but we knew he was lonely. Earlene brought light and joy into his life. Bill had always liked traveling – especially in his motor home. The two of them continued that type of travel, but Earlene also introduced him to cruises. He loved cruising. They went to Hawaii and through the Panama Canal and all around the Caribbean and I don’t know where all else. They had just returned from a fabulous cruise a few weeks before he entered the hospital.

Bill was there every time I changed residences. He helped me pack and made numerous trips to Goodwill and the dump when I moved from Lakewood to Loveland and again when I moved from Mariana Cove to an apartment downtown.

Bill was there when I took an interest in labyrinths. He and Earlene and our niece Denae spent a day together walking all the labyrinths we could find in Loveland and Fort Collins.

Whatever was going on in my life, I always knew Bill was there for me.

I have mentioned just a few scattered examples from my own experience. If you talk with my sister Linda and my younger brothers, Dennis, Ralph, and Roy – you will hear their testimonies about how Bill was always there for them. He was the one we could all count on.

Bill was like Kipling’s Elephant’s Child. He was filled with ‘satiable curiosity”. He wanted to know everything about everything. From the time he was a young boy, he was taking things apart and putting them back together. He had a knack for dealing with electricity and kept boxes of wires and electrical gadgets around – just in case he would have a need for some project he was involved in.

He loved model trains and could not pass by a flea market or vintage shop without stopping in to see if they had some train engine or car he might like to add to his collection. Amazingly, they almost always did have something he absolutely had to have.

But what Bill loved most was a bargain. When he discovered a sale, he would stock up. When croc shoes were selling for $5.00 a pair, he walked out with two bulging bags full. They weren’t all in his size, but never mind, someone would be able to wear them. And, wow, what a savings. Bill spent more money saving money than anyone I ever knew – with the possible exception of our dad.

Bill was especially curious about the meaning of life. Why we are here on the plane of existence? What are we supposed to learn? Where we go when we leave?

Bill studied the belief systems of many religions and then came to his own personal sense of spirituality. He was especially impressed with The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield. The book was published in 1993 and Bill discovered it a few years later. He bought copies for everyone and we held a family book discussion to explore the ideas it presented. It was one of the first popular books that presented the theory of quantum physics. Bill bought into the idea that everything consists of energy and that human beings evolve as they ascend through higher and higher vibrational levels.

We are all here today for one reason. We all loved Bill and in that I see the possibility of a lasting legacy for his life. The best way we can honor Bill’s life is in expressing love for each other. I feel like we are moving into a sacred space of healing. This space can be expanded and intensified as we love one another.