Mr. Joe Henry Parker

Joe Henry Parker, was born in the old Rosiclare hospital on December 1, 1957, to Adam S. and Sarah H. (Hardesty) Parker. At home waiting to greet him was his beloved big sister, Nancy Parker. While their parents were working long hours, Nancy and Joe could be found at the Elizabethtown hardware store being cared for by Mildred (Toots) and Harold (Dago) Ferrell.
Joe always had a strong passion for hunting which began on Alfred Ralph’s place, squirrel hunting around Watson’s Bluff and the surrounding land on Whoopie Cat Mountain.
In the 1960’s, Keith Spivey joined the family when he met and married Nancy. Joe gained a brother in every sense. One of their favorite pastimes was hunting quail with Adam and enjoying quail “fries” with the family.
In 1975, Joe graduated from high school and worked at the Sunoco station across from JB’s grocery store. There he noticed, Janie McClusky, a new girl in town, and asked her for a date. Although she had no idea what the “drags” were, she eagerly accepted. 3 years later, on August 26, 1978, they were joined in marriage. They made their home in Elizabethtown and Joe worked for Empire Dock Company and became a member of the Elizabethtown Fire department.
In 1983, Joe was hired by the Illinois Department of Corrections, beginning his career at the Hardin County Workcamp, where he was recognized for his strong work ethic and dedication. In December of the same year he migrated to Vienna Correctional Center, where in August 1995 he was promoted to Correctional Captain and worked as 3-11 shift commander, until February 2000. Later that year, he accepted another promotion which moved him to Shawnee Correctional Center, first as Unit Superintendent, then in January 2001 as Assistant Warden. In October 2002, he reached a pinnacle to achieve Warden of Shawnee Correctional Center. In December 2002, he opted to take advantage of a State of Illinois early retirement package.
While beginning his illustrious career in 1983, Joe experienced the most significant milestone in his life, on October 28, 1984, with the birth of his darling daughter, Kyla Jane Parker. Although her dad worked evenings and weekends through most of her school years, she always knew she had her Dad’s heart and support and he did his best to attend every basketball game and school function. On June 27, 2009, he proudly walked his “hot rod” down the aisle when she married Jesse Burford and was elated with the birth of his grandchildren, Vance Henry Burford on September 10, 2010, and Shelby Jane Burford on May 2, 2014. He enjoyed pulling them in the wagon, riding the 4-wheeler and recently enjoyed a family trip to Gatlinburg.
After Joe left Corrections, he began work for USDA Job Corp in January of 2004 where he stayed until December 2007. He then began part-time work for Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts in May of 2008 where he stayed until his health failed.
Joe enjoyed several hobbies throughout his life: skeet shooting, including attending the World Shoot in San Antonio, dove hunting at Jerry Haney’s, deer hunting with Lonnie, David and Keith and following NASCAR. This included his attendance at Talledega Speedway with Trish and Brian and recently the Daytona 500 with Lonnie and Maryann, cheering on the number 88 which earned him the nickname of “Uncle Ernie”.
Joe died Wednesday, July 16, 2014, at Hardin County General Hospital. He was preceded in death by his parents, Adam and Sarah (Hardesty) Parker, close family friends Harold (Dago) and (Toots) Ferrell, in-laws Denny and Marlene McClusky and granddaughter Vivian Rue Burford.
Survivors include wife, Marlene “Janie” (McClusky) Parker; daughter, Kyla Jane (Jesse) Burford; grandchildren, Vance Henry and Shelby Jane Burford; sister, Nancy (Keith) Spivey; sister-in-law, Patricia (Brian) Frieden; nieces and nephews, Tara (Jeff) Cavender, Kendra (Clayton) Arnold, Adam (Heidi) Spivey and Barrett Spivey; great nephews and nieces, Cole and Luke Spivey, Kuri Spivey Carmichael, Conner Spivey, Eleanore Arnold and Tyler Cavender.
Visitation will be at the Cox Funeral Home on Sunday afternoon, July 20, from 3:00 to 5:30 with a graveside service to follow at Empire Lodge Cemetery in Elizabethtown. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Hardin County General Hospital.