Born in Decatur, Alabama, on October 17, 1969, Stacy Allen Parker was never to know an easy life. His father left long before his earliest memories, and he moved from place to place with his mother, never knowing one home. While his mother lived her own life, and his brother and sister fought through theirs, Stacy struggled to raise himself in a lonely world. His best times were those when he went out on the road with his uncle in his eighteen wheeler or lived with his aunts and uncles back in North Carolina.Stacy started playing football at a young age, and he was good at it. He loved the hard work, sweating until he was soaked, working out until he was sick, and building a relationship with his teammates. His favorite part of football was the hard hits he could give. He wanted to be the "quarterback killer". He was the star of whatever team he played on, making it into a newspaper story on his team in Wytheville, Virginia. He moved from team to team, as his mother moved from place to place. They finally settled in Loganville, Georgia, where he played high school football and went to school with his closest cousin, Tammy. He loved being a Football Warrior.
His plans for a football career were not to be, and at the age of 16 he dropped out of school to work full time and help support his mother. After a couple of years, though, he realized that he wanted more out of life and worked with his cousin, Del, to study and pass his GED and score very high on the entrance exam for the United States Navy. In August of 1989, just before his 20th birthday, Stacy headed off to boot camp in the Great Lakes training facility. Twenty years later he retired in August of 2009, a proud Navy Chief.
Never one to do things halfway, Stacy came out of boot camp and immediately volunteered to go overseas for Operation Desert Storm. He was on shore duty. He did two cruises with his helicopter squadron during that first "shore duty" assignment, determined to be a part of whatever action was going on. Stacy learned how to be a top mechanic on the "birds" that he loved and he learned to supervise others. During his twenty years in the Navy, he did ten long cruises, one of those almost a year during Operation Enduring Freedom. He only did three years of real shore duty. His proudest moments, though, were in the last years of his career, as he saw so many of those who he mentored and served with becoming successful in their Navy careers. This man who had no mentor himself growing up, learned to teach others. He loved being a Military Warrior.
In August of 1993, the week of his first re-enlistment, Stacy met his future wife, Alethea. They were married a couple of years later, and he instantly became a father to Alethea's son, Jeffrey. They were joined in 1996 by Stacie Marie, and again in 2000 by Nicholas. His nephew, Billy, also lived with the family for several years, adding to the commotion and activity at home. Stacy enjoyed family time and made so many memories for the children over the years. They were each special to him, as he worked to be the father that he never knew.
Having the responsibility of the family, though, soon brought Stacy back to his faith. He lost the swagger of the young kid out of boot camp who could take care of it all himself. He realized that his family needed a foundation, and that he needed to lead them as well. He began attending church and studying the Bible. During the long cruise in 2002 to 2003, he began studying the Bible on his own and teaching others on the ship what he was studying. He also came to realize that there was nothing that he could do to take care of his family at home.... except to pray. So he prayed. He spent hours in study and prayer, and came home with many miraculous stories.
One night he woke from a deep sleep to feel the urge to pray for the helicopter. He got out of his rack (bed to us civilians) and hit the floor on his knees, praying for something that was unknown to him. As he started to climb back in bed, his teammates from the detachment came to wake him. One of the helicopters had malfunctioned. The part that was needed to land was broken or missing. Yet somehow that helicopter made it all the way back to the boat and landed. It was an answer to prayer.
That practice of prayer became a part of his life, closing out every day and becoming a part of who Stacy was. At Jeffrey's high school graduation party Alethea's Aunt Joyce suffered a stroke. By the time the ambulance arrived she was unable to speak or move at all. The ambulance left for the hospital, fifteen minutes away, and everyone knew that this could be trouble. A stroke victim needs immediate attention, and the distance of the country home caused the ambulance to arrive late, with a long trip back. As everyone stood looking at each other, Stacy felt led to pray. He got everyone in a circle, holding hands, and he prayed. At about that time, Aunt Joyce sat up in the ambulance and asked the attendants if she was going to be okay. They were very startled. She went on to the hospital and went through a couple of days of tests to find out that she was okay. Stacy was a Prayer Warrior.
Stacy got a motorcycle when he was a teenager. He loved that bike and rode everywhere on it. However, on the day of his first official date with Alethea, he traded his bike in for a car. Only the helmet on the back seat indicated that he had ever had a bike. Ten years later he bought his first Harley, a Heritage Classic. He not only took the safety class, but he became an instructor. He began to ride again, enjoying the byways of Virginia and traveling with groups of friends and family. Every year he rode to Rolling Thunder, to remember the Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action. In 2010 he rode his new Road Glide all the way to Sturgis, South Dakota, stopping in museums and towns along the way, and visiting family on the way back. He became a Road Warrior.
We will miss this man who faced life with so much courage and strength. He rose above the odds of a poor life and made something of himself. Along the way, he became a Warrior - no matter what he chose to do. Whether it be the Football Warrior, the Military Warrior, the Prayer Warrior, or the Road Warrior, he did it all to the best of his ability. Now he is Heaven's Warrior, living every day in the presence of his King, the final destination for his life.
