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RED-dy To Express Praise And Adoration

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By GEORGE NEWMAN and DAVE NICHOLSON The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 14, 2008

PLANT CITY - The Rev. Don Mason turned to the book of Ecclesiastes in his eulogy for Roy Parke.

The poetic Old Testament verses about there being a time for everything - a time to be born, a time to die, a time to reap and a time to sow - could not have been more fitting.

"Roy had many seasons of planting and reaping," said Mason, Parke's pastor for 23 years and minister of Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Plant City.

Parke was a man of faith who strived to do the right thing, Mason said.

The sanctuary at Evangelical was all but filled with people wearing red - that was Parke's last request - to pay their respects to the farmer with an eighth-grade education who became known as the Strawberry King.

"He would love seeing all this red," said Joe Newsome, a longtime friend who served on the Florida Strawberry Festival board with Parke.

Parke, 87, died June 5 after a period of declining health that included a stroke six years ago. Newsome said the service wasn't a final goodbye.

"I look forward to seeing Roy again in heaven, and we certainly all will if we're Christians," Newsome said.

At the memorial service and a visitation beforehand, Parke was recalled for his showmanship, savvy business sense and, on occasion, his Irish temper.

Parke was gregarious and outgoing, but he was not afraid to stand his ground for a cause, said Newsome, who told of an occasion when Parke had a nose-to-nose confrontation with a singer's road manager at the strawberry festival.

Someone came to Newsome and told him to come quick because "Roy's fixin' to whip somebody." He said he got between the pair, but it illustrated how Parke was a man who wouldn't back down if he believed he was right.

Speaker after speaker praised Parke and his wife, Helen, for creating a legacy that lives on through their daughters, Cheryl Meeks, Sandee Sytsma and Colleen Fulton; sons, Bob and Gary; and other family members.

"It was always a family affair," fellow grower Carl Grooms said of the Parke strawberry empire.

Mayor Rick Lott said Parke was an icon among more than strawberry farmers.

"When I was a child, I thought of Roy Parke as a legend and as the face of Plant City," Lott said. "Literally, everything good about Plant City was rolled up into the Parke family and the Parkesdale Farm. Forty years later, I still feel the same way. Mr. Parke is still the face of Plant City. He remains a legend in the community and in the strawberry industry. Throughout my life, my view of him has never changed."

The Rev. Tommy Warnock, assistant pastor at First Baptist Church of Plant City, echoed Lott's remarks.

"Roy has been a true patriarch to the community. He has set a great example for all of us to follow. Roy was all about Plant City. He had a chamber of commerce presence about him. He was a truly great ambassador for the area and the strawberry industry.

"Now we need others to carry on in that same vein. Roy will certainly be missed by us all, whether you knew him or not."

Donnie Randall, an employee at Fancy Farms, said he went to school with one of Roy Parke's sons, Bobby, and recalled how he encouraged newcomers.

"What sticks out in my mind is how Roy was always trying to make life interesting for the new farmer," he said. "He always greeted me with a handshake and a smile. He loved to see young farmers coming up and making their way in the business. He was a serious businessman, but he had a wonderful sense of humor."

Parke was born Oct. 18, 1920, in Northern Ireland. His family immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1926. In World War II, he served in the Army. He and other family members including his father, Roy Sr., moved to the Plant City area in the 1950s.

He developed a knack for growing berries and for showmanship.

He was among the first farmers to try such innovations as using overhead sprinklers for freeze protection, Grooms said. He was a promoter of strawberry farming and welcomed news reporters at all hours on cold nights when berry crops were threatened.

WTVT, Channel 13, anchor Kelly Ring, who was one of the speakers at the memorial service, said Parke was a good communicator whose frequent TV appearances made him perhaps Florida's most-recognized farmer.

Ring recalled the first time she met him 20 years ago during a Christmas Eve freeze. Parke welcomed her into his home, and the family opened their Christmas gifts before going into the fields, she said.

"They were more worried about me not having a gift to open," she said.

Chuck and Les Doepky, like many of Parke's friends, say they were made to feel like family by Roy and Helen

"That is just the way they are," Les Doepky said. "Roy makes everyone he meets seem so comfortable. I felt like I was his adopted daughter."

"Roy always had a smile for everyone. He never knew a stranger," Chuck Doepky said.

Parke couldn't talk after his stroke, but "the last time we saw him at church, he was still giving his friends the thumbs-up sign," Doepky said.

Rene Chavera, the certified nursing assistant who cared for Parke during his last 10 months, got to know him when he worked for the Health Center of Plant City. Parke was a patient there, and the family hired him when the Strawberry King went home.

The two drew close. Chavera said he and Parke would go to movies together and often eat lunch and dinner at many of the area restaurants.

"My first trip to a Red Lobster restaurant was with Roy," Chavera said. "He was a wonderful man with a wonderful family. They have all been so very good to me.

"Only last month, barely more than two weeks ago, we all went to Indian Rocks Beach to the family condo. Roy was walking and getting along very well. The first day we were there, we went to the Frog Pond Restaurant an old stomping ground for the Parke family. The owner came into the parking lot and greeted Mr. Parke and escorted him into the restaurant. It was like a giant reunion. Roy had a great time, doing what he wanted to do."

At the memorial service, daughter Sandee Sytsma said she appreciated the outpouring of support.

"Dad loved every one of you, and I know you loved him."

Reporter George H. Newman can be reached at (813) 865-4451 or gnewman@tampatrib.com. Reporter Dave Nicholson can be reached at (813) 865-4432 or dnicholson@tampatrib.com.

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