Douglas Doug PARMLEY

19 MAR 1947 - 10 JUN 2016

• BIRTH: 19 MAR 1947, LaPorte County, IN
• DEATH: 10 JUN 2016, Melbourne, FL

• MARRIAGE: 12 MAR 1966, St Joseph County, IN

INDEX

[N27937] Douglas Eugene Parmley
Mar. 19, 1947 - June 10, 2016

MISHAWAKA - Douglas “Poopsie” Eugene Parmley of Melbourne, FL (formerly Mishawaka, IN) peacefully passed in his sleep on June 10, 2016. Born in LaPorte, IN, to Lydia and Eugene Parmley, Doug was known affectionately by his many friends and colleagues as “Poopsie” (a nickname given to him by his wife, Sharon). He grew up in North Liberty with his siblings, Sharon Renz (who preceded him in death) and Carol Nunley of North Liberty, and Craig Parmley of Osceola, IN. He met the love of his life, Sharon Riba Parmley, at the age of 15 while working at Brite-Way in South Bend. They fell in love on their senior class trip to New York City. Doug graduated from North Liberty High School in 1965 and married Sharon on March 12, 1966. They lived in South Bend for many years and moved to Mishawaka in 1985. Over those years, they were blessed with three children, Laura Parmley McMahan of Greenfield, IN, Robert Parmley (Wendy) of Mishawaka, IN, and Robin Parmley Lundeen (Daniel) of Elgin, IL. He deeply loved his family and had a special place in his heart for his five grandchildren: Hunter McMahan, and Taylor, Tori, Trent and Tanner Parmley. In March of 2015, Doug and Sharon celebrated fifty years of marriage. Doug received his paramedic training at Indiana University, South Bend, and was sworn into service for the South Bend Fire Department in 1968. He worked as both a fireman and a paramedic, but he dedicated his life's work to saving lives as a medic and to providing instruction to other medics coming up the ranks. Passionate about representing the efforts of his colleagues and well-revered by his peers, Doug was elected to serve as the Union President of Firefighters Union Local 362 for several years. After thirty years of faithful service and countless shenanigans with his extended family at the firehouse, Doug retired in 1998 at the rank of Lieutenant. In retirement, he worked as a bailiff at the St. Joseph County Juvenile Justice Center until he retired to Florida. Early in his marriage he also served honorably in the U.S. Army.Doug loved God and truly had a servant's heart. He found joy in laughter and had a fun-loving and sometimes mischievous spirit. Beyond his dedication to his family and work, he was a skilled carpenter and he liked to travel, restoring every room of his 1926 home and camping in his motorhome. He also enjoyed cooking at the firehouse and at home (including his much-missed smoked barbeque ribs and mouth-watering Chicken Paprikash), and joining in on a highly competitive game of poker or Euchre. Doug's celebration of life will be held at the South Bend Firefighters Hall (4025 Lincoln Way West, South Bend, IN) on Saturday, July 30th. Visitation will be from 11:00 am - 12:00 pm EST. A memorial service will be held at noon. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to the South Bend Firefighters' Association, Inc. (PO Box 3581, South Bend, IN 46619).

Published in South Bend Tribune on Jul. 24, 2016.