James Parker, age 84, passed away peacefully at his home in Anacortes, Washington surrounded by family on January 12, 2021.

He was born in 1936 in Little Falls, Minnesota, to Jack and Eleanor Parker.  He was the third of four brothers.  He graduated from high school in 1954.  He then attended St. Cloud State University and graduated with a B.S. and a B.A. degree in 1959, where his focus was on education.  At one point, all four Parker brothers attended St. Cloud State at the same time.  He started teaching elementary school in 1959 at Deephaven Elementary School in Minnetonka.   James saw an opportunity in 1963 to teach with the DODDS school system overseas and started teaching in Germany.  His teaching career took him from Germany to Japan, Turkey, and Italy.  In 1967, he transferred back to Germany.

He married his wife Irene on February 22, 1968 and started a family with the birth of their daughter, Brigitta.  While starting a family, Jim was able to obtain a Master's Degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Minnesota.  In 1973, Jim and his family transferred to Italy where his sons Ralph and Jeffrey joined the family.  Unfortunately, Ralph passed away from SIDS and is buried in Sardinia, Italy.  In 1977, Jim and his family returned to Germany where he became a school principal.  In 1993, after serving 30 years with DODDS, he retired from Landstuhl Elementary/Middle School and the family settled in Anacortes, Washington.

Jim's first love was his family.  His second love was fishing.  During his retirement, he bought a boat and spent many adventures fishing on the Puget Sound.  His third love was traveling, where he took many trips with his wife and family.  The love of Christ was his rock and the foundation for everything he stood for.

After 7 years of battling dementia, he succumbed to his illness.  He is survived by his wife Irene and his two children Brigitta and Jeffrey.  We are forever grateful for the loving care that was given to Jim by the many professionals of Hospice of the Northwest, and a special thanks to Tami from "All Ways Caring Homecare" of Oak Harbor.  Donations may be made to Anacortes Lutheran Church.

There will be a gathering of family at a later date.

To share memories of James, please sign the online guestbook at https://www.evanschapel.com