Precious in His Sight

Chuck and Beth Parker, on the occasion of their 25th wedding anniversary and the reaffirmation of their marriage vows.

Beth McKain Parker, 50, of McCandless Township, died March 21, 2008, at her residence. She leaves her husband, Charles Henry Parker, III; two teenage daughters, Dulcinea Marie Parker and Kendra Nicole Parker; two brothers, Richard G. McKain, II of Kilbuck Township, and Douglas S. McKain of Ross Township; and two sisters, Lauren Zwick of Avalon and Sharon Vereb of Saxonburg.

Beth was a graduate of Avonworth High School (class of 1975) and Chatham College (class of 1979).

A life-long enthusiast of Scots history, Beth served as a co-convener for the Clan Donald Society in the 1980s and resided in Scotland for a year to establish the genealogical library at the Clan's visitor center on the Isle of Skye.

She worked in administrative capacities for Andrus Architects and Holy Family Institute in the 1980s. She left the workforce to become an impassioned stay-at-home mother to her daughters.

Very involved in homeschooling and the local homeschooling community, Beth authored a website dedicated to providing quality resources to homeschooling families. She shared her accumulated wisdom with many homeschool families through this site as well as Trivium-at-Home and ClassEd online classical education communities. In addition, she was a member of North Hills Christian Homeschoolers and a former member of Cranberry Christian Homeschoolers.

Memorial contributions in Beth's name may be made to the Home School Legal Defense Association, P.O. Box 3000, Purcellville, VA 20134-9000.

With that, he swept the scythe through the grass, thinnish and full of ox-eye daisies, and sighing with a dry sound. And because the grass was so thin, you could watch the scythe, like a flash of steely light, through the standing crop before the swath fell. And it seems to me now that it was like the deathly will of God, which is ever waiting behind us till the hour comes to mow us down; yet not in unkindness, but because it is best for us that we leave growing in the meadow, and be brought into His safe rickyard, and thatched over warm with His everlasting lovingkindess.
~from Mary Webb's Precious Bane

Godspeed, dear friend. You will be missed.