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2006 SESSION
062333748WHEREAS, Ernest Parker, Sr., a native son, was born on May 7, 1925, and called to his heavenly reward on June 22, 2005; and
WHEREAS, Ernest Parker, Sr. was educated in the Norfolk Public Schools and graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1944; and
WHEREAS, immediately following his high school graduation, he was drafted into the United States Navy, where he served his country valiantly during and after World War II; and
WHEREAS, after his honorable discharge from the United States Navy, Ernest Parker, Sr. resumed his education at Norfolk State College and later transferred to North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, where, in 1951, he received his baccalaureate degree; and
WHEREAS, on April 1, 1951, Ernest Parker, Sr. embarked upon a teaching career in the Virginia public schools, obtaining his first teaching assignment at Robert Russa Moton School in Prince Edward County, and 22 days later, one of his students, 16-year-old Barbara Johns, led the historic student walkout over the wretched conditions at the segregated school for African-American students; and
WHEREAS, the action taken by the students led to the federal court decision in Davis et al. v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, Va., et al., 103 F. Supp. 337 (1952), which was later consolidated with four other cases and the merits of such case argued before the United States Supreme Court in the landmark decision Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954); and
WHEREAS, in 1955, Ernest Parker, Sr. moved his family to Richmond, where he joined the faculty of Virginia Randolph High School as a mathematics teacher and football coach, becoming one of the most honored and committed teachers of the Henrico County Public School system; and
WHEREAS, Ernest Parker, Sr., noted for his commitment to helping students of all backgrounds, including his Wednesday night classes for any student desiring help in mathematics, took pride in the accomplishments of his students at the annual Virginia State Mathematics and Science Conferences and in their endeavors in college and as adults; and
WHEREAS, before retiring from an illustrious career in the teaching profession in 1982, he taught at Hermitage High School and the Mathematics and Science Center in Richmond and in the national A Better Chance program, the preeminent national education program to recruit gifted and talented students of color for the nation's finest schools and colleges; and
WHEREAS, Ernest Parker, Sr. was a devoted husband, a loving father who nurtured his children and delighted in their successes, a faithful churchman, and a mentor and role model to many persons; and his memory will be cherished by family and friends who deeply grieve his loss; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Ernest Parker, Sr.; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Ernest Parker, Sr., an admired and respected educator, as an expression of the respect in which his memory is held by the members of the General Assembly.