Richard Wayne Parsons

Richard “Rick” Parsons escaped this mortal realm and his broken and paralyzed body April 17, 2020 at the age of 41. He has been a quadriplegic since the age of 19 and lead quite a unique life. He was preceded in death by his loving mother, Joy McGreger Parsons, who devoted her life until her last breath to ensuring he was loved and cared for. He leaves behind his doting sister Leslie Parsons Brink (John Brink III), his father Ronnie Parsons (Donna Pettigrew Parsons), and nephew Jeff Brink. He also leaves behind all of the boobs in all of the world. Big or small he loved them all and always said a good personality could escalate the status of any pair. He always lived life his way and said or did whatever he pleased. He was a true rebel in every sense of the word. His life accomplishments before his paralysis include long suspensions from school, escapes from at least 2 juvenile detention centers and a 2 year stretch of evading the law – All before turning 18 – quite impressive. He was very proud of these accomplishments and they always brought a big smile to his face whenever he spoke of them. As a small child during recess he would often decide he had enough of school for the day and would just leave the playground and walk 2 miles home leaving his teacher distraught and his mother horrified. He also had a huge and giving heart and there are many stories of his generosity and caring nature that he never wanted anyone to talk about. Later in life his hobbies included making anxious people uncomfortable in his presence – this gave him so much pleasure. He also loved asking people to do absurd things for him as an experiment to see if they would actually do it or just give him the finger. He often preferred the finger as it made him laugh. He loved telling stories, dirty jokes, tattoos, guns, listening to music and watching hummingbirds and butterflies in the summertime. He very much enjoyed all kinds of movies. Comedies were his favorite but he especially loved romantic comedies which showed the softer side of this hard-core rebel. He loved those close to him with all of his heart and found comfort in humor and the love from those around him. A special thank you to Karen Brink (John Brink II) for all of their help and love they gave to Rick in his final months and SouthernCare New Beacon Hospice for the care and support they provided to Rick and all of us. He was so many things to so many people and he will be dearly missed. We will not be having a service at this time but would like to have a celebration of life in the future where we can gather together and swap stories about Rick. Please have a beer or cold beverage and watch the butterflies and hummingbirds in his memory.