Larry D Parker Sr.’s Legacy Scholarship

My father inspired me to go to trade school. Watching him work on our church growing up was monumental to me. He made his mark in this work doing something that would last years after he passed away. He put up church benches, laid out the carpet on the pulpit, and stained new hardwood floors that church shoes would stomp on. Being raised with hard work, dedication, and respect was left behind in that church, no questions asked just humble man that wanted to help the church that my mother was raised in, Memorial Tabernacle. The church floors were warned and tattered. It was time to refurbish the halls that we marched in. The stained-glass plains were still beautiful. In addition to his hard work, little bitty old me was there to help and left a good mental note of my father’s true heart and feelings towards people and revealed how he was when it came to helping others in his community. Sister Suzie couldn’t do anything but smile and thank him with the rest of the church-going members. With the heat that summer it could’ve been anybody’s duty. Something we didn’t take for granted but the big guy didn’t shy away from the challenge, it’s something he had experience doing. He once told me that worked on constructing a mall before and that he was a hard hat, but he wasn’t hardheaded. We sanded the floors and stained hardwood floors with a strong finish, there was new bright scarlet red carpet I have nailed down to the pulpit area. Remarkably the church turned out to be great like he said it would with every bit of his assurance. We had so many dinners, activities, and family moments there. What compares to Sunday service? After your father built the church up and you get to walk through those church doors with him. My mind was blown it was my first hands-on activity as a young man and he gave me responsibility for tasks. Luckily, we had breaks and got great food in between the work grind but we were grinding. All was worth the wait, the nice touches on the family church restored by the two of us, they were lucky to have us. The lesson that I learned is that hard work is rewarded with time and patience. Yes , there I was patient and everything turned out phenomenal. But factually that’s what made me want to earn a degree in Business. It’s the best lifestyle for me. Working with my father instilled a work ethic nobody ever had. To me having a degree in welding technology possibilities are endless. Calls for more church-going memories, more parties, and more loving thy neighbor. Leaving enough said just an iconic representation of dedication and hard work. My legacy going forth is to continue that dedication and hard work. There is no comparison. Church floors stained, church carpet laid, and church benches put up was the most iconic thing I witnessed him do. That’s what inspired me to pick up a trade. If I earned this scholarship, I would use the money I saved to pay for my tuition for my B.A in Business. My favorite subject is math. Earning my degree would be everything to me to continue and strive for greatness, He was a great role model, a great father, and a great provider. He is my hero and I wish I could change how the world looked at Black African American fathers.

It was hard for me to choose a career at first honestly. I worked many trades over the years and began to notice a trend between them that connected to the environment and our changing culture along with global markets. One thing was clear to me, environmental influences greatly affected sustainability. Sitting at my desk inside the Indian Motorcycle Dealership I looked out the window to see my city on fire from the George Floyde riots that were ensuing at the time. Covid had just hit two months prior and between the full city and state lockdowns and business closures our dealership had gone from ten full time employees to three. The general manager, a service tech, and myself the business development manager who handled all sales, service, and finance as well as social media. With the fear of Covid more people chose to buy or ride motorcycles for social distancing and gas savings which meant that supply chain issues would soon be a problem with Polaris closing several plants due to quarantine and other issues. I saw a much bigger problem, however. The dividedness of our country and fear. I am a daughter of the American Revolution and have had family who've fought in every war on U.S. soil and abroad. My ancestry being French-German and Native American. Living in this state I learned the value of community and our natural resources. My family are farmers and tradesmen. We grow or create things in industry. It is the contribution to our community and their needs that we have found our purpose. I am a leather artisan by trade the past twenty years a skilled seamstress and upholsterer. The last five years working in business. I decided while finishing my business degree during Covid that to better serve my community my focus would be in manufacturing engineering. This industry along with agriculture is what I know, and love. It is also an industry that impacts the people and community of my great country the most with our changing environments. Helping businesses through engineering and innovation to become more sustainable while growing U.S. Manufactuing jobs, reducing supply chain issues, increasing job markets, reducing carbon footprint are just a few examples. People that I consider my hero. My father who served in the Army and worked his entire life on a ten color German Heidelburg printing press, he trained me, and I worked three years alongside him. My grandmother who worked on our 100-year-old 280-acre family farm for over 50 years with no formal education. Caring for my grandpas 3 bachelor brothers up until they all passed 20 years after my grandfather passed in a farming accident. Lenard Peltier, a Sioux warrior and one of the original members of AIM. Being wrongfully imprisoned and serving a life sentence still today for initiating changes in systems and beliefs. These people taught me values and loyalty to not only my family but my communities. That through our actions, discipline, and how we choose to see our connection to others that our life's work has a greater purpose. It can change lives even without a formal or traditional education. One thing I would change about the world is the focus. I remember saying the pledge of allegiance in school every morning and praying openly together at community events. We were united on the things that bonded our differences as a people. The past decades the focus has been on what separates us individually from each other rather than unites us. I do not see differences, just my brothers and sisters, and the earth we share.