Raymond Dick Parker

The story of Raymond “Ray” Dick Parker’s life began on August 13, 1930.  His parents (John Ray Parker, born August 13, 1900 in Big Timber and Matilda “Tillie” Caroline Dickman Parker, born September 21, 1899 in Missoula), and his older brother (Charles “Chuck” Dewitt Parker, born  August 22, 1924 in Missoula) brought Ray home to a little house at 1010 Vine Street in the lower Rattlesnake.  His life ended on March 4, 2025 on Sycamore Street, just a mile up the Rattlesnake from where he started.  He was surrounded by loving parents, a brother and grandparents when he was born. He was surrounded by his loving wife, children and grandchildren when he died.

In the intervening years, Ray had many great adventures.  He attended Prescott Grade School.  His stomping grounds were the upper Rattlesnake where he explored often on his bike.  He knew the original homesteaders in what is now the Rattlesnake Wilderness past the Sawmill Gulch trailhead.  He had stories about seeing bears, lions, bobcats and an enormous Bullsnake that he thought from a distance was a small tree that had fallen across the road. His family moved from Vine Street one block over to 1121 Poplar so Tillie and Ray Sr. could take care of Ray’s parents (Dora Aldridge, born February 7, 1874 in Pleasant Hill, Missouri and Chauncey Dewitt Parker, born December 30, 1868 in Buffalo, NY).  Ray and Chuck had a bedroom on the second floor and Ray said they would sneak out through the window and climb down a trellis.  Sometime after Dora died of breast cancer in 1938, the family moved to a smaller house at 1007 Poplar.  When Ray was 12, most of the young men in Missoula went off to war. Local ranchers needed summer help and Ray was enlisted to drive a truck on a ranch southeast of Garrison.

Ray went to Missoula County High School (now Hellgate High School), which his parents, brother, wife, children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews also attended.  He embarked on his first big adventure after high school to Alaska where he worked at a fish cannery.  He then attended Montana State University (now the University of Montana) and earned a degree in history.  Ray’s college career was interrupted by the Korean War.  He served in the USAF in Alaska and Washington state before being discharged in 1952.  Ray fought fire as a smokejumper during his college years.  He, and other Missoula smokejumpers, started the fire season working out of Silver City, NM and came back north for the Montana season.  He also worked the green chain at the Bonner mill. Ray and his friends, including his great friends Gar and Ed Thorsrud, often skied at Big Mountain.  At the time, lots were for sale adjacent to the ski runs for $200.  They always intended to pool their money and buy a lot, but after buying ski tickets and beer, they never followed through with the plan.  Many years later, Marilyn and Ray bought a house at Big Mountain and had many good winters skiing in and out of the door of the house.

After university, Ray found himself in Washington, D.C. visiting friends.  He stopped by Senator Mike Mansfield’s office to ask about a planned dam near where he and his father had a small ranch up Gold Creek.  Mansfield asked what Ray was planning to do with his life and told him they were hiring at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).  Mansfield sent him over to interview and Ray, along with several other Missoula smokejumpers, was hired.  Ray supported operations to thwart Soviet and Chinese influence in Cuba, Tibet and Southeast Asia.  He was posted in Turkey, Laos and at Edwards AFB in California.  Stories about the Edwards posting were sketchy, but his job had something to do with the U-2 spy plane program.

Ray met his wife of 67 years, Marilyn June Foster Parker, in the mid 1950s.  They attended the same high school and college, but didn’t meet until their mutual friend, Bill Demmons, skied into the Gold Creek ranch with Marilyn. Marilyn said Ray served hot chocolate and cinnamon toast.  They married on January 26, 1958 at Marilyn’s family ranch in Ovando.  They spent the first night after their wedding with a nice family in Helmville who put them up after their car broke down.  They made their way to Lancaster, California near Edwards AFB.  First daughter Diana was born there in 1959.

They then spent a year during a CIA Headquarters assignment in the Washington, D.C. area.  Audrey and Gar Thorsrud also had a headquarters assignment at the time so they had good Montana friends close by.  Second daughter Linda was born in Missoula right before leaving for Okinawa. Marilyn, Diana and Linda spent a few years in Okinawa while Ray worked for the CIA in Laos and was able to visit his family occasionally in Japan.

Marilyn and Ray returned to Montana in 1963 so their daughters could grow up with their grandparents and cousins and have the same idyllic childhood they’d had in Missoula.  They moved into a house next to Rattlesnake Creek that Ray’s uncle built and remained there the rest of his life.  One of Ray’s many legacies for his children and grandchildren (other than being the best father and grandfather ever) was his and Marilyn’s purchase of a lot on Wild Horse Island in Flathead Lake.  Their tiny log cabin has been Shangri-la for them, their daughters and grandkids for more than 50 years.  When Diana and Linda were young and they all camped in a tipi on Wild Horse, they made an annual Fourth of July trip to Finley Point to spend the day with their great friends Deanne and Ed Thorsrud and kids Darci, Lloyd, Tana and Betty.  In his 80th year, Ray thought he and Marilyn should have their own bedroom, which led to the construction of an even smaller log cabin next to the original.  The cabins have been base for many years of wonderful times with friends, hikes around the island, sightings of deer, sheep and horses and some good gin and tonics.

Ray also bought 40 acres up Mill Creek where the family had many good picnics and Ray managed the timber.  Luckily, he had a small timber harvest the year before the property burned over in the Black Cat fire in 2007.  The family subsequently planted thousands of seedlings that are thriving.

Ray’s career was spent as a counselor for Job Corps at Cedar Flats in Idaho and later at Trapper Creek near Darby.  He was well-loved by his students, many of whom remained in touch throughout Ray’s life.  Ray was often visited by former students who thanked him for supporting their start in life. Several of his students were Hmong who Ray helped relocate to Missoula after the war along with his good friend and fellow CIA officer, Jerry Daniels and Jerry’s mother.

After Ray retired, he and Marilyn enjoyed more adventures in Europe with longtime friends Mimi and Joe Saltsman and a wonderful sailing trip in the Caribbean with Mickey and Bob Hawkins.  The highlight of Ray’s retirement years was the births and childhoods of his grandchildren, Craig Lerch and Sarianna “Sari” Lerch.  Craig and Sari called Ray “Grandy” and the name stuck for everyone.  Ray bought an old van to take Craig and Sari camping.  Ray had a bed, but Craig and Sari’s sleeping quarters were the upper luggage cubbies.  He and Marilyn often watched Craig and Sari after school and walked over to Clark Fork School to read to their classes. 

In his last few years, Ray spent a lot of time in his lounge chair looking out the window toward Rattlesnake Creek at the many deer that passed through the yard, the bears in the spring and fall and an occasional a mountain lion.  Ray said he could die happy if a pair of mallards took up residence in his pond, and they did.  He also enjoyed the company of his Golden Retriever Chauncey who Ray named after his grandfather.  Good friends Barbara and Rod Huff say there’s always an animal sign when someone passes on. Dad’s might have been a huge Pileated woodpecker that visited outside his bedroom window on March 3rd.

Ray is survived by his wife Marilyn Parker, daughters Diana Parker (Ron Powell) and Linda Parker (Fred Lerch), grandson Craig Lerch, granddaughter Sarianna Rembe (Tevan Rembe), nephews Doug Parker (former spouse Toneybeth Clark) and Grant Parker (Molly Galusha), grand-nephews Matthew Parker (Audrey Sohikian) and Jackson Parker, niece Meg Parker, grand-nephew Cooper Johnstad and great-niece Luna Parker.  He was preceded in death by his parents Tillie and Ray Parker, brother Chuck Parker, Chuck’s wife Jean Parker and niece Lynn Parker.