Gail Parker
Gail Parker
Gail Parker

Obituary of Gail Parker

GAIL HANSHAW PARKER On September 2, 2016, after a valiant fight with COPD, Gail Parker passed away peacefully, on her own terms, at her home in Peralta, NM, surrounded by loved ones. She took her last breath with Dasher, her precious companion dog, lying on her legs licking her hand; her daughter and a nurse on one side; her long time caregiver and friend holding her feet; and her husband petting her head. Gail would have been 82 in October. Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on October 27, 1934, she was the only child to Hugh and Gladys Hanshaw. Raised in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, with fiery red hair and a personality to match, Gail was already a well-known figure in town as a child, driving her donkey and cart through the streets. Later she moved on to a horse before graduating to a jeep, with her monkey by her side. Her parents owned the Hanshaws dime store in Edinburg and she spent time in the store selling popcorn and ice cream in her youth. At Edinburg High School she was the drum major. Gail attended Texas Woman's University (Denton), the University of Colorado (Boulder), and the University of Texas (Austin). After earning her BBA from UT, she married James F. Parker, Jr.; the couple had three children. Returning to McAllen, Texas, she taught elementary school and later high school and was a Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) coordinator. Again single, in 1972 Gail relocated with her children and her future husband, Robert Lopez to Albuquerque, where she attended UNM and earned her Master's degree in Guidance and Counseling. While working on her Masters and PhD, she held internships with NM prisons, DRUG, and the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA). Gail almost completed her PhD but left the program after her advisor's death to work for NIDA with heroin addicts and alcoholics. She next worked for the NM Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, as a vocational counselor. Later she was promoted to area V supervisor which encompassed the entire state. Her final career was as a guidance counselor at the Technical Vocational Institute (now CNM), until her retirement August 30, 1996. Then
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Gail Parker, please visit Tribute Store

Service

Albuquerque Garden Center,10120 Lomas Blvd NE,Albuquerque,New Mexico
Share Your Memory of
Gail