“Her children arise up and call her blessed.” Proverbs 31:28
Christine Reeves Parnell, age 94, was called home by her Heavenly Father on June 29, 2015. She was met with a joyous celebration by her husband, H. Marvin Parnell, her parents, the Rev. Paul Reeves and Myrtle McWilliams Reeves, and Elsie Reeves, sisters Nadine Smith, Frances Ham, and Bobbie Sanford, and Marvin’s parents, H.A. “Buddy” Parnell and Gussie Tooke Parnell, as well as numerous beloved aunts and uncles and grandparents who have gone before her.
Christine was born Sept. 7, 1920, in Stamps, Arkansas. Her family moved to Minden and she spent her childhood there. She married Marvin Parnell August 26, 1939, and made her home in Gibsland until her death.
Christine was a woman of deep and quiet faith. She read through the Bible cover to cover many times, and could recite many full chapters, verse by verse. She was a devoted and beloved mother, dedicating herself to making a home for her family. She loved to cook and garden and to read and to write poetry. She was always informed and interested in current events.
She enjoyed traveling and visited Israel and England, as well as many beautiful sites in the United States, such as the Rocky Mountains, the Northeast during Autumn, Michigan, Washington, DC, the Smokey Mountains, and the coast of northern California.
Christine was an astute business woman and kept up with the stock market and her own personal finances almost to the end. She taught her family much about honesty and responsibility by her actions. She leaves a lasting legacy of love and faithfulness.
Treasuring Christine’s memory are her children, Richard “Dicky” Parnell, Gibsland, Mary Jane and her husband Ken Renwick, Dallas, and John Mark and his wife Melinda Parnell, Dubberly. Her beloved grandchildren are Kenneth Renwick (Molly), Richmond, Virgina, Steven Renwick (Reid), Dallas, Thomas Parnell, Dubberly, and Sarah Parnell, Dubberly. Great-grandchildren are Nathan Renwick, Marshall Renwick, Luke Renwick, and Elizabeth Renwick. She is survived by brothers, Wayne Reeves, Cuernavaca, Mexico, and Claude Reeves (Betty), Minden, and many beloved nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be at 1 p.m., Friday, July 3, 2015 at the church founded by her father and mother, Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Minden with the Rev. Jim Crain assisted by the Rev. Ed Dilworth. Interment will follow at Gibsland Cemetery in Gibsland under the direction of Rose-Neath Funeral Home in Minden and officiated by the Rev. Wayne Howington and Rev. Johnie Adkins. The family will receive friends Thursday, July 2, 2015 from 5 until 7 p.m. at Rose-Neath Funeral Home in Minden.