By: Rory Parnell
My father moved to Derry in 1979. He had grown up in
Virginia in a town called Falls Church, and then went to Boston University for
college. He fell in love with the northeast, and after getting married moved to
New Hampshire. There, he started a legacy as a community member who strove to
help develop the Town of Derry. I was born a few years later and joined two
brothers. We grew up in Derry and went to school here. Growing up, my father
had many lessons for us to teach. He was always a proponent of setting a good
example for us and working hard to develop us as people. Now, looking back as an adult I can see now
some of the sacrifices he made for us and the community.
When my father and I discuss the type of law firm we want to
be, he often said we want to be lawyers who help those in the community but
also make our own kid’s soccer practice. As we grew up, he coached our flag
football teams, our soccer teams, and even moonlighted as a summer league
hockey coach. He did this because he was needed not only by us, but by our
teammates and our community. He coached so many teams and joined so many local
sports boards and organizations that I don’t think I could list them without
someone helping me. I always just expected that this was how it was, and this
was normal. As I grew into adulthood, I realized just how much work he had to
put in to be there for us and the community.
As Derry moved into the 21st century, my father
was there. I remember we had the Main Street Corporation office in our old East
Broadway office, and I remember how much he worked with them to help revitalize
the image of downtown Derry. East and West Broadway did not look as it does
now. We’ve become modernized and an example to other New Hampshire towns that
investing in your community will pay off. He worked hard to develop the image
of our community, and continues to do so to this day. He worked hard as
president of the Chamber of Commerce and made some difficult decisions. These
decisions were hard and took a strong person to make them. Yet, he volunteered
to not only make them, but to be a target for those negatively affected. In the
end, the community was much better for it, and he was content with that.
Getting credit for his work was never something he focused on or sought out. He was happy with knowing the results were
good for those around him.
So, tonight at the Derry/Londonderry Chamber of Commerce
Annual Dinner he will be put in a spot that I do not believe he expected. He
has been named Citizen of the Year for his tireless work in the community. As I
think about the many years I’ve had the pleasure of calling him my father, I am
happy to see him recognized. I was fortunate enough to be the one to call him
and tell him that he was Citizen of the Year. His reaction was telling. He was
speechless, which is something that does not happen often for a lawyer. He had
to take a few moments to compose himself, as he felt honored to receive the
award. The honor was not from getting the award itself, but from the
recognition of the individuals and community members he worked hard to develop
this community with. He put in countless hours volunteering for various
community programs because he believed that is the way we need to act. We
should be positive influences in our community, and strive to better those
around us. This was its own reward to him, so being honored as Citizen of the
Year meant a great deal to him because of those who chose him. These are his
friends and fellow community members working side-by-side with him to make the
community better.
To say I am proud of my father is obvious, but the fact the community
is able to recognize his efforts means a great deal to myself and the rest of
the firm here at Parnell,
Michels & McKay. We are so happy to see him get this award tonight and
join the list of so many other community members that have received this award
in the past. Tonight, he is named
Citizen of the Year, and we are just plain proud of you, Dad. You set an
example for all of us to achieve, and I hope we have many years left of working
to make our community and the state of New Hampshire better than when we came
to it.
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