January
Our year started off crazy busy. Jim came on the road with his seasonal bronchitis and it quickly developed into pneumonia. I say quickly because I saw him the first weekend he was in the area. He was coming up the following Thursday after he wrapped things up at the jobsite on Wednesday night. So it was completely unexpected. I was just glad that he was so close by and that Bossman was so patient and willing to let me take off as soon as I hung up the phone with Jim. His illness pretty much took up the entire month of January… and as rough as being ill is… we enjoyed every second together.
February
We celebrated Jim’s better health and Valentine’s Day a weekend before the actual day… and it was bliss. He was spoiled rotten with the last few South Park Season DVDs I hadn’t purchased for him yet almost completing his collection… a special night of roses and candles... and as for me, I got the perfect gift. I got a beautiful card with the most sincere and loving handwritten letter a woman has ever received… and a romantic dinner for two at one of our favorite restaurants at one of our favorite out of town get-a-ways.
March
March was a packed full month with lots of house sitting which meant that instead of me driving out to meet up with Jim on the road, he had to drive home every weekend to hang out at the McMansions down the road. I. TURNED. THIRTY. Holy cow.I flew out to California for Easter and took my youngest brother with me. Jim was excited to get to see the kids for Easter, but due to other circumstances he didn’t get that chance.
April
April was a blur, blur, blur of activities. It’s the end of the traditional tax season. We started looking for a bigger condo to accommodate more of his things… and in Jackson that’s not always an easy thing to procure… especially at the tail end of ski season!
May
We found the coolest condo thanks to being in the know and grabbing it before it was listed! That meant the month of May was spent packing, packing, packing… how on earth two people managed to cram so much crap into such a tiny space will forever elude me. We kept a good attitude through it all… and even created a few more inside jokes.
June
June was like a tornado whipping through our lives. We were unpacking, unpacking, unpacking… working, working, working… and shuffling money and schedules to make sure that the kids were going to be able to have a great summer and attend a couple of sports camps and summer school stuff. It was chaos! But we loved every second of it! Not being used to that much commotion though I took off one night while Jim was down with the kids and snapped one of the coolest shots in my portfolio which was a highlight of my month. The Freedom jobsite was moved up a couple of weeks and we got to take a whirlwind of a trip down to pick up tools… always the perfect opportunity for great conversations and long laughs…
July
We celebrated the 4th with our family by our side and shared all the laughter and ribbing that comes along with that. We had plans on attending Bossman’s daughter’s wedding out of town in a beautiful little secluded area of Wyoming. And then, our world and the world of a few precious others changed forever. Our life changed from the building blocks of our fairytale to the nightmare abyss of a personal hell.
August
After 7 long excruciating weeks of intensive investigation and nearly a night slept by myself and countless others major breaks were made and successful arrests were made in the final days of August.
September
September involved a lot of traveling. But none as important as the moment I got to see the three of them in the courtroom in shackles and handcuffs.
October
Just when I thought it couldn’t possibly get any worse in my life I get the call to get down to California as quickly as I can because my grandfather, the first Jim in my life, was passing. There’s a saying that a father is a son’s first hero and a daughter’s first love and my Papa was both of those for me. Even though I lived so far away he was here every day for me through everything that was going on. And the moment I lost him it was like losing the last shred of hope in the dark world that my life had become.
November
November was another hectic month. Two more trips to Colorado. I finally had the chance to meet Jim’s father, but unfortunately it wasn’t under the circumstances that Jim and I had imagined. Hell, it wasn’t even under the circumstances that Jim’s father and I had arranged. But then when it comes to the Durgan men it really didn’t surprise me.
December
Of the last 12 months this month was by far the hardest. If someone would have told me in January that I would be sitting here in December crying myself to sleep every night I would have guffawed in their face. But here I am… with six long nights and five full days left in 2008… and I wonder when the pain will cease. I wonder how much more I can possibly handle before I break. I wish for the life I was supposed to be having this month. The life that I was so looking forward to starting this past fall and the coming year.
I didn't know what this year would bring. I don't know what the next year will bring. I only know that it will bring the hope of justice and peace of mind.
My grandfather passed away holding my hand on Sunday, October 12, 2008. He led a very full life and had a lot of memories to share before he passed. I know he is in a better place and not in pain, but it isn't making losing him any easier.
Jimmie Ray Parnell was born in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma on February 20, 1934. He passed from our mortal world in his home surrounded by family on October 12, 2008.
Jimmie graduated from Broken Arrow High School in 1952. After graduation, Jimmie enlisted in the United States Navy where he served for four years aboard the USS Wasp as a radio tech.
Jimmie met and married his wife, Juanita, in Sunland, California. Jimmie and Juanita were married for fifty-one years and together had two children. Jimmie moved his family to Bakersfield in 1965 when he gained employment as a police officer with the Bakersfield Police Department. While employed with the BPD Jimmie worked diligently on earning his Associates of Arts degree from Bakersfield College in Criminal Justice. Jimmie retired from the BPD in 1971 after sustaining an injury in the line of duty.
Jimmie was a very devoted husband, father, and grandfather. He was very active with his children in both the Greenfield Baseball Association (G.B.A.) and Future Farmers of America (F.F.A.) programs.
Jimmie is preceded in death by his son, Jimmie Ray Parnell, Jr., his mother and father, Ross and Birdie Parnell, his brothers, Herschel Parnell and R.G. Parnell, and his sisters, Wilma Coplen and Maxine Heath.
He is survived by his loving wife, Juanita, and daughter and son-in-law, Tammy and Dallas Warren of Wyoming; granddaughter, Tara Ann Barber of Wyoming; grandson, Ted Barber of Utah; granddaughter, Tosha Barber of Oklahoma; grandson, Kidd Ray Warren Wyoming; great-granddaughter, Kindra Lynn Barber, and great-grandson, Ted James Barber of Utah; brothers, Danny Parnell and Dale Parnell; sister Sherrie (Parnell) Crothers; several brothers and sister-in-laws, many nieces and nephews, and even more friends.
Jimmie was a member of the VFW Post 97 and the American Legion 26. Jimmie never met a stranger and was a very goodhearted and caring person.
In lieu of flowers the family asks that you please make a donation to a charity of your choice.
Services will be held Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. at Sacred Heart Church at 9915 Ramos Avenue, Bakersfield, California 93307.
Papa, we know you loved all of us dearly and we all loved you and will miss you. God saw you getting tired, a cure not meant to be, so He put his arms around you, and whispered… “Come with Me.”
