Mary Parks
Age - 89
November 30, 2023
Mary Lou Parks 1934 - 2023 Mary Lou (Berberich) Parks, a tireless advocate for aging with health, well-being and dignity and a proud wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother passed away at age 89 at her home in Merrill Gardens of Santa Maria, California on November 25, 2023. Mary Lou was born July 10, 1934, in Yankton, South Dakota to parents Arthur Berberich and Sara (Rossman) Berberich. She grew up in Sioux City, Iowa with five special lifelong friends, graduating from Heelan High School in 1952. Mary Lou graduated from St. Catherine's School of Nursing in Omaha, Nebraska in 1955 and began her work as a Registered Nurse in Omaha. She met her husband Tom at Creighton University in Omaha. They married in 1957 and continued living in Omaha during the years their four children were born. In 1971, Mary Lou, Tom and family moved from Nebraska to Lompoc, California. In 1974, Mary Lou became Lompoc's Senior Opportunities and Services Coordinator under the Community Action Commission in Santa Barbara County, when the first Older American's Act programs were funded. In that job she helped start some of the senior services that are still being provided in Lompoc today. During that time, she also assisted in getting funding toward a Senior Center. The family moved to Agoura Hills, California in 1975. In the late 1970s, Mary Lou attended California State University, North ridge to pursue her long-held goal of completing her college education. She earned her B. A. degree in 1982 and went on to obtain a Master's in Gerontology from the University of Southern California in 1988. While she was pursuing her undergraduate and graduate degrees, Mary Lou served as the Plant Nurse for Proctor and Gamble in Oxnard, California and then as the founding director of Fitzgerald House (now Senior Concerns Center) in Thousand Oaks, California. She and a colleague created a non-profit Care Management Agency in 1983, to serve frail elderly clients and their families. In 1989, Mary Lou became Coordinator of c*are Management at WISE Senior Services in Santa Monica. Following the 1994 North ridge earthquake, Mary Lou worked at Valley Medical Center as Team Leader for Project Rebound. She then became the Eldercare Outreach Nurse for a new Geriatric Evaluation Center serving for the San Fernando Valley area, while also working part-time for Lifenet Care Management in Santa Barbara County. Mary Lou and Tom moved back to Lompoc in 1996 where she continued working for Life net. Mary Lou and Lifenet started a memory screening program under Dignity Health and also provided bereavement support groups and classes for Dignity Health. She also served for 22 years as a Court-appointed Private Conservator and Fiduciary for frail elderly clients. Though Mary Lou officially retired at the age of 80, she continued her many volunteer and community- involvement activities for several additional years. Mary Lou volunteered as Chair of the Lompoc Senior Commission, helping to secure a building on 7th and Ocean for a Senior Center. She assisted in securing another building (the current De Wees Center) when the Lompoc Valley Medical Center was built at the 7th & Ocean site. Mary Lou stepped down from the Senior Commission in 2019. She has served on the Board of the Valley Haven Adult Day Program and supported that program as a dedicated volunteer since its inception in 2000. She served on the Advisory Council for the Area Agency on Aging and on the Adult and Aging Network. She helped found and later served on the Advisory Board for Community Partners in Caring and was a member of the Education Committee for the Lompoc Hospital Foundation as well as a Stakeholder in the organization "Caring for Lompoc. " Mary Lou enjoyed being a member of Alpha Club both times she lived in Lompoc, and she served on the club's board several times. She belonged to Women in Chamber and AAUW and she was active in community theatre both in Nebraska and in Lompoc. In her later years she wrote three books: Oh Lord Have Mercy, Taking the "E" Ride Through the Golden Years, and HerStory. She also co-authored Reading on the Run with the writing group The Tea Leaves. Mary Lou enjoyed spending time with her family, visiting old friends, art, biking, traveling, and gardening. Mary Lou was preceded in death by her parents and her brother William J. Berberich. She is survived by Tom, her husband of 66 years, and their four children and families: Mary Beth, Dan (Colleen Murphy), Greg (Margie Strong), and Tom (Clare Sheridan). Mary Lou and Tom have ten grandchildren: Kendall Kidney, Katie Kidney, Erin Parks (Chad Spencer), Ryan Parks (Carli Campbell), Shannon Parks (Victor Ballesteros), Kelly Parks (Michael Nicolarsen), Marjorie Strong (Tom Butkiewicz), Matthew Strong, Colin Parks and Riley Parks. They also have eight great grandchildren: Millie and Finnegan Spencer; Gavin, Declan and Sloane Ballesteros; Luke and James Nicolarsen and Rhys Butkiewicz. A Celebration of Life will be held at Valley of the Flowers United Church of Christ in Vandenberg Village, California on January 6, 2024, at 11:00am. The service will be followed by a luncheon in the Fellowship Hall. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Valley Haven Adult Day Program (www. lompocvalleyhaven. org) or Alpha Literary and Improvement Club of Lompoc, P. O. Box 1153, Lompoc CA 93436. To plant Memorial Trees in memory of , please .Show more
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