George Anthony "Tony" Parker

George Anthony “Tony” Parker, 81, of Cheswick, passed away November 23, 2017 due to complications from a stroke. He was the beloved husband of Susan Parker of Glenshaw, to whom he was married 43 years, and father of John Parker of Brooklyn, New York.  The oldest son of George Ira and Margrett Ghrist Parker, Tony was born on June 24, 1936 in Harrison Township. He is also survived by his younger brother Richard G. Parker of Bath Township, Ohio.

After graduating from Aspinwall High School, Tony earned a B.S. in chemistry from Carnegie Tech and a PhD from Penn State. He worked in applied chemistry for U.S. Steel and St. Joe Minerals at Mellon Institute in Pittsburgh, where he thrilled small visitors by freezing things in liquid nitrogen and dropping them to smash on the floor of his lab. Tony went on to teach chemistry at many western Pennsylvania universities, including Penn State, Clarion, Indiana, St. Vincent, and Seton Hill.

A (nearly) life-long resident of Cheswick, Tony was known for such peculiarities as rollerblading down the middle of Spruce Street while carrying a hockey stick and punting a football, by himself, back and forth across the baseball field behind his house. He served on the board of the Springdale Library and on various committees at Walter Chapel United Methodist Church in Rural Ridge.

Tony was a voracious reader who particularly enjoyed history, astronomy and enormous classic novels. His interest in astronomy led him to try finding all 110 Messier objects with his telescopes. A big, if pessimistic, sports fan (hockey, football, baseball), Tony once received stitches from the Penguins' trainer after being struck in the head with a wayward puck at the Civic Arena. He coached Little League in both Cheswick and Harwick, but did not teach his kid to hit left-handed, as he himself was -- probably his only failure as a parent.

Tony enjoyed music of all kinds, from seeing John Coltrane at Penn State in the 60s to his Pittsburgh Symphony subscription in the 70s and 80s to torturing his wife with AC/DC in the 2000s. He and Susan hiked and biked trails across western Pennsylvania. His daily challenge in later years was sudoku, with which he was usually successful. Tony was a really good guy and is sorely missed.

Friends and family are invited to attend his celebration of life gathering that will take place on Saturday April 7, 2018 from 12noon until 2pm. In THE CHARLES B. JARVIE SPRINGDALE FUNERAL HOME INC. 801 Pgh. St.

www.jarviefuneralhome.com

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