Lewis Dean Parker Jr.

Lewis Dean Parker Jr.’s sunrise was on March 23rd 1951. He was baby brother to Rita Mae, son to Lewis Dean Parker Sr. and Juanita (Shaver) Parker in Emporia, Kansas.He grew up the typical little boy loving his cowboy boots, his pistols and his cowboy hat. He soon developed a love of the Boy Scouts and he spent quite a few years earning his Badges and having fun with the other boys of the troop and his dad. 

After graduating high school in 1969, he went to work at his grandfather's gas station and worked long and hard hours to save money to go college. At Emporia State University, his choice was Business Management, however he soon decided differently and as liked to tell people that he changed his major to beer drinking. He soon went to work as manager of a mobile Home factory, he liked getting out on the road and driving. That was the start of his life of driving the roads. Around that time, he decided that he decided to buy his own truck. He treasured that truck and was so proud of it.

On June 8, 1974, Dean's life changed drastically, when he was seriously injured in a tornado in Emporia.He was luckily found and rescued, sent to the hospital by a couple of family members that found him. There his recuperation and rehab began and continued for 2 years.After that experience he decided he really did not want to be in Kansas much anymore so, he decided to move to Colorado. (Somebody mistakenly told him there are no tornadoes in colorado!)So, he headed to Colorado. He lived a lot of different places worked quite a few different jobs met a lot of wonderful loving lifetime friends and continue to drive for various other Trucking companies.

His life took a lot of twists and turns with friends’ relationships and life itself. Dean was fortunate enough to have a little girl, born in November 1983, his daughter, Melody Deanna Parker. He was able to visit and spend time with her whenever he got back into town. Later in life, in 2000 his daughter gave him the light of his life, his granddaughter Kayley Ann Parker. That little girl stole his whole heart; she was his whole world.

Along the way Dean spent a lot of time working very hard driving truck and being a bouncer for a band of his friends when they would travel. He made so very many lifelong friends moonlighting as a bouncer for the band.

One evening when he was out with his friends celebrating his birthday, he happened to meet a woman named Linda and he was interested in learning more about her. SO, Pamela introduced them. At first, they were hit and miss in catching up with one another but they finally did and being the amazing, caring, gentle, kind, loving man that he was, he welcomed Linda and her boys, Evan and Adam, into his life for vacations, trips to the lake, trips to Kansas to visit family so many wonderful get together with friends and family. Dean had made his way back to his family and was no longer absent he was there when he could be and loved his family so very much. 

Needless to say, Dean and Linda fell in love very hard and most completely and were married December 5th, 1998. Dean was very dedicated to helping Linda raise her two boys and they came to love him as a father. He was always willing to do anything for anyone especially the kids. Becoming a homeowner was one of his lifelong dreams and he relished working in his own house making it their home. Their life went through many ups and a few downs, but they saved and purchased a beautiful home, large enough to have family stay with them.  

In 2018 Dean realized that he was having trouble breathing and we researched and decided upon a double lung transplant so he could have a longer life and more of a quality of life and he did get that with his new lungs August 11, 2021.  

Dean and Linda picked up and move to Arizona April 2021, for a year and a half to be close to the team that helped to give him a second chance of life. A family somewhere opened their hearts giving him the gift of life. The lung transplant itself was an absolute blessing it went so very well, a miracle!

His progress was interrupted when he fell, breaking his hip and collapsing his lungs. 

But he was strong he fought it all and he fought back and it took quite a while but he was doing very well, enough so, that they were finally able to go back home to Colorado in August of 2022. There were a lot of glitches that happened, covid was one of them along with pneumonia and some infections but he fought bravely to get through all of it. He did his absolute best at PT to become stronger and more independent.

In this year 2025 Dean had three different infections that required home IV medication which all went very well. The last round he had been in the hospital 3 weeks when he finally got home, he was weaker, he was sadder, he was more frightened. But he still did his best to keep working on his strength. 

Dean wanted to honor his donor and be able to live a healthy, quality-filled life. He honored the donor’s family by fighting. His lungs were in perfect condition as though he had just received them they were beautiful, they were pink and he was breathing on his own. 

When Dean went home to be with his Lord it was not something any of us expected. It was devastating but in honoring his wishes he had tissues and corneas that he was able to have donated to someone else in need. He wanted to honor that gift he was giving by passing on a gift of his own to someone else. It is wonderful to know that through his unselfish loving caring beautiful heart and donation that's 75 people can get benefit from his gift. 

He is and will always be, loved and we are so very grateful that we all got to know love, laugh with and live with such a wonderful man.

Dean is preceded in death by his dad, Lewis Dean Parker Sr. and Juanita (Shaver) (Parker) Fann. He is survived by his wife Linda, Sister Rita, brother-in-law Al, brother-in-law Dale brother-in-law Alan, Daughter Melody, granddaughter Kayley, her 2 little girls, amazing cousins, many nieces’ nephews and great nieces and nephews. He was loved very much by all and he loved them all with his whole heart.

Dean’s Sunset was June 30,2025.

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