The community has lost a well-known name in local manufacturing and scouting. Robert Richard Parkhurst, 84, of Sedalia, died Saturday, March 2 at Bothwell Regional Health Center.
Parkhurst was a 1957 graduate of Smith-Cotton High School and a graduate of Missouri Valley College in Marshall. Parkhurst served as Vice President and President of Parkhurst Manufacturing for 30 years. He then became the owner of Metal Processors Inc. He also farmed row crops and raised cattle.
He was a member of First Christian Church in Sedalia since 1975 and served as a Deacon, Elder, Board Chairman, and for five years as Explorer Scouts Leader.
The Rev. Dr. Chad McMullin with First Christian Church told the Democrat that Parkhurst was quite an impressive gentleman.
“I’ve been the pastor of this church for 13 years, so spent quite a bit of time with him over these years,” McMullin said. “He's a very active member in our church and a very generous contributor. A wonderful, spiritual man. To me, the things that stand out were his writing ability that he shared with the Democrat and with the public, I know he raised donkeys for quite a few years and, of course, the Scouts.”
According to his obituary, he was a dedicated leader in the Boy Scouts of America, earning many awards including Scouters Key, Silver Beaver, Golden Beaver, Wood Badger. He was a member of the Order of the Arrow. He participated in the Philmont Scout Ranch for five years, the National Jamboree and World Jamborees, including Japan, Norway, and the U.S. He served 30 years as Scoutmaster and five years as Post Advisor.
“From the scout side, he had all kinds of resources that he would draw from, woods-type resources and experiences that he was eager to share with the next generation,” Cliff McBride said. “He was a true outdoorsman and if you had seen him when he put on regalia and did ‘mountain man’ and wouldn’t just camp in the tent and wear the coat, he would cook the way they did back then, he would eat the way they did back then, and he would teach the way it was at that time.”
Known as a great cook, a certified pilot and an avid collector of coins, dishes, guns and knives, Parkhurst was also an excellent writer.
“He wrote for the Sedalia Democrat and there were people that were upset when he quit writing,” McBride said. “He was a scout dad in our troop and our sons were friends. On campouts he was always looking for Morels early, he was that kind of an outdoorsman, and he knew his outdoors, he could survive. Not only that, he could have taken care of a lot of other people as well.”
He enjoyed fishing, hunting, camping, and birding, and his obituary states that he “was always happy to pass his love on to the next generation.”
“I knew him most directly through membership in First Christian Church,” Rod Ellis said, “but I knew him from scouting for a long time. I was a scout in the 1960s in Troop 66 First Christian Church. Richard was actually a Scouter in another troop in town, but he was a big-time scouter – not just local units, but he contributed in kind and monetarily and with time.”
Parkhurst was a strong supporter of State Fair Community College. He was also a member of the Missouri State Chamber of Commerce, a lifetime member of the Sedalia Area Chamber of Commerce, a 20-year board member of the Center for Human Services and served on the Sedalia Heritage Foundation and as Chairman of the Sedalia Airport Board.
“He was always really supportive of the ministers in his life, myself included,” McMullin said. “Always encouraging and kind. That's a real nice feature to him. We share an affinity for bird watching and he had a neat home tucked back in the woods, and he would watch birds a lot. He used to go a lot to Minnesota to Canada and enjoy his fishing trips. There were several times he would lead children's moments in our church and talk to the kids about the outdoors and faith and all kinds of things.”
“He was always gracious, a kind of quiet fellow, full of stories,” Ellis said. “Interested in people and doing good things.”
He is survived by his wife, Judy, five children, 16 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
Visitation will begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, March 9, followed by memorial services at 11:30 a.m., both at First Christian Church in Sedalia. Arrangements are under the direction of Heckart Funeral Home in Sedalia.
Chris Howell can be reached at 660-530-0146.
