Joseph “Skip” Ludwick Parker, 77, of Fort Wayne, IN, and formerly of Austin, TX and Las Cruces, NM, passed away on Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at Heritage Pointe. He was born in Santa Fe, NM on July 18, 1943, to the late Joe and Julia Parker. He graduated from Santa Fe High School in 1961. His journey continued to New Mexico State University graduating in 1969 to pursue a career in education, and he was a true Aggie. He was a teacher and coach at Lynn Junior High until he was appointed principal at Court Junior High in 1978. In 1982, he was appointed as the first principal of the new Picacho Middle School. During his educational career in New Mexico, he was active in the National Education Association. In 1991, he accepted a position with Region XIX-Educational Service Center in El Paso, TX and worked with the surrounding school districts. In 2000, he and his wife Beth moved to Austin, TX where he did educational research with Southwest Educational Development Labs. With this job, he worked with schools throughout the US.
After retirement, he and his wife were able to travel to many ‘bucket list’ destinations. In 2011, they moved to Fort Wayne, IN, to be closer to their grandchildren. They settled in a retirement community and were involved with many of their grandchildren’s activities including baseball and hockey games, tennis matches and dance recitals.
He is survived by his wife of 53 ½ years, Beth; daughter, Karen; and son, Michael (Beth), all of Fort Wayne; three grandchildren, Macy, Jackson, and Halle; and sister, Jean Ragsdale of San Antonio, TX.
Memorial Service is 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 16, 2021 at Taylor Chapel United Methodist Church, 10145 Maysville Road, Fort Wayne, with calling three hours prior. Pastor Dereck Fields officiating.
Memorials may be made to Heritage Pointe, 5251 Heritage Parkway, Fort Wayne, IN 46835 or donate to his grandchildren’s college fund at www.Ugift529.com code J3M-R7J, N8Z-M56, or 316-21W.
