Family was always No. 1 for Maxine L. Parr, daughter Linda Novotny said.
A homemaker, Parr was devoted to her husband, daughter and son Jack, grandchildren Kevin Parr, Debbie Shabaz, Polly Boruff, James Thomas and Annie Meadows and her five great-grandchildren, meeting the youngest on her 95th birthday.
Parr, 95, of Crown Point, generously gave to her church, family, community and Wittenberg Village, where she lived independently in the villas for 15 years.
“She was the most giving person I know,” Novotny said. “Whenever she got something in the mail, coupons, a magazine article, she would always think about who would enjoy it and save it for them.”
A volunteer in the Wittenberg gift shop, Parr also helped with bingo games and other activities and led exercise classes for nine years.
“She would walk over from the villas carrying her weights and supplies,” Novotny said.
An early riser, Parr set her alarm every morning for 5:45 a.m. She loved to eat out, especially celebrating birthdays at Marti’s Landing or dining at Main Street Cate, bringing half of her meal home. Parr always found room for a good dessert but never gained weight.
Parr loved to read and worked crossword puzzles every morning.
“Anything she could do to keep her mind active and alert, she did it,” Novotny said. “You could almost fill an entire library with books she had read.”
Married 52 years to late husband Dean, Parr met him at a dance. She enjoyed telling stories about their times together and travels across the United States by car, packing their camp stove and food and stopping at picnic tables to enjoy the scenery. Parr kept a diary and photos of each trip.
Parr was very involved in church work at the Presbyterian churches in Gary, Merrillville and Crown Point.
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