Mary Parmenter

Mary Parmenter, daughter of the late Gerald and Edmay A. (Racette) Wurtz, was born May 10, 1935, in Clifton, Kansas, and departed this life January 14, 2021, at her home south of Mountain Grove, surrounded by loved ones. She was 85 years, 8 months, and 3 days of age.
Mary attended school at Lone Star. She married Martin Parmenter on October 15, 1951, in Sharp County, Arkansas. Seven children were born to this union.

Mary worked at Brown Shoe Company in Mountain Grove and then drove a school bus for Mountain Grove Schools for several years. She enjoyed driving and enjoyed the children she met over the years. She and Martin also farmed. Their entire family worked together taking care of the farm, milking cows, and putting up hay. Mary enjoyed being outdoors and was a natural with the animals. She took care of and fed many small wild animals that would come to her yard. She also had two special pet dogs and a cat that would love on no one but her.

Mary grew wonderful gardens, canning much of what she grew. She made the best salsa ever. She also had beautiful flowers. In her spare time, she enjoyed word puzzles as well as jigsaw puzzles and had several of her puzzles framed. Her most treasured time was when she was together with her family.

Mary was saved and baptized and had been a part of the Calvary Temple church family for many years. She loved reading her Bible and would often be found in her chair with her Bible on her lap.

Besides her parents, Mary was preceded in death by her husband, Martin, on February 20, 1998, one son, David Parmenter, two brothers, Jim Wurtz and Don Wurtz, and one sister, Evelyn Hedke.

She is survived by three sons, Bill, Richard, and Danny Parmenter, three daughters, Edna Miller and her husband, Richard, Opal Neal and her husband, Randall, and Dolly McCleary and her husband, David, all of Mountain Grove, Missouri, four brothers, Charles Wurtz of Topeka, Kansas, Derald Wurtz of Leroy, Kansas, Larry Wurtz of Columbia, South Carolina, and Jack Wurtz of Clyde, Kansas, two sisters, Sharon McDaniel and Trudy Weir both of Topeka, Kansas, twenty grandchildren, thirty-five great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren, and many other relatives, neighbors, friends, and church family who will dearly miss her.