David Parker

On Sunday, November 29, 2020, David Elliot Parker, loving husband and step-father of two children passed away at the age of 69. He died after a long battle with cancer and COPD. David was a man of great charisma and had a wonderful penchant for engaging people.

 

David was born on March 7, 1951 in Cedar Falls, Iowa as the youngest of three children to Woodrow and Harriet (Nielsen) Parker of Dike, Iowa. On September 18, 1992 he married Patty (Hammitt) and with her two children Autumn and Forrest, became a family. David was previously married to Cheryl Stidwell of Jefferson, Iowa from 1975 to 1989. David survived a battle with cancer 30 years ago and he viewed every day thereafter as a bonus and lived each with gratitude. David was an accomplished musician, having been a founding member of the Midwest Rock band named Dahcotah, playing drums and singing backing vocals from 1970 to 1980. Some of Dahcotah’s biggest songs were “Conquer the Universe”, “She’s a Bore”, and “You Were Meant for Me.” After the Rock and Roll days, David dove into bluegrass teaching himself to play the fiddle, the mandolin and novelty percussion (aka spoons and a washboard) and scratched his itch to be onstage by playing with The Frontier Fiddle Band in the 1990’s.

 

David lived in Fort Dodge, Iowa for a number of years then moved to Badger, IA, then Harcourt, IA then eventually to Branson, Missouri where he and Patty lived on Table Rock Lake and savored a life of boating and fishing. The greatest joys of his life came with spending days on the water with Patty, Autumn, Forrest, and their families. The house on Table Rock Lake afforded many opportunities to spend time with his eldest grand-daughter Madi out on the lake in the pontoon boat or the Boston Whaler. Above all else, David was a historian. He didn’t just study history, he lived it and re-enacted it. He served as the director of the Fort museum in Fort Dodge for many years and was a key contributor to the growth of the museum and the long running and popular Frontier Days event. When not at the museum or playing fiddle onstage, David was part of the Buckskinner’s Rendezvous re-enactment community. Here is where David made many lifelong friends, especially as a member of the Old Crow Lodge, and made a visceral connection with the early natives, explorers, and settlers of this country. Upon moving to Missouri, David found a new role that melded his love of boats and bringing history to life as Titanic Captain Edward Smith at the Titanic Museum in Branson.

 

He is survived by his wife Patty, stepdaughter Autumn and her husband Jake Grosnickel, their children Madi, Willa, Wesley, stepson Forrest and his wife Lydia (Brown), and their children Audrey, Liam, and Oliver. David is also survived by his older Sisters Kathy Parker, Sharon (Parker) Harken and Russel Harken, niece and nephew Sue Harken-Houser and Dean Harken. He was preceded in death by his Mother Harriet in 1954, his father Woodrow in 2000, his namesake uncle Elliot “Ike” Parker in 1995 as well as all of his other aunts and uncles.