It is with deep sorrow and much love that we mourn the passing of Melanie Clarice Parks, 68, of Terry MS.  She passed away peacefully at home surrounded by family on December 2, 2022 after a valiant battle with cancer.

On March 5th, 1954, Melanie was born to Herman & Peggy Piner in Bainbridge, GA. As the first-born daughter of an Air Force pilot, Melanie and her sisters were able to travel the world while growing up. Her father retired in Nebraska where Melanie graduated from Belleview High School in 1972. Melanie had two children, her daughter Heather and son Matthew, whom she cherished.

Melanie had a magnetic personality and was always in pursuit of fun and joy in her life. This led her on many adventures and there is not enough type-space in the world describe them all. The most important adventure of her life that she shared was her battle to overcome addiction. It became apparent that this was her calling from the Lord and mission to lead others to Christ and on the path to recovery. One of her proudest and most significant achievements was Founding New Life for Women (NLFW) in 1988. Thousands of women’s lives have been saved through NLFW, impacting not only those women’s lives, but also the countless children and family members of those women. At the time of her passing, Melanie had celebrated 23 years of sobriety. Later in life Melanie accomplished a lifelong goal of graduating from Hinds Community College in 2013 at the age of 59. It was with great pride that she ended her professional career as the Director of Death Registration, Marriages & Divorces at Mississippi State Board of Health Vital Records.

Melanie met the love of her life, Bill Parks, in 1998 and they married May 1, 1999 with their loyal confidant Blue (a blue heeler) at their side. After 23 years together he was able to be at her side, along with their two dogs Buster and Ally, as she peacefully joined her Lord and Savior. Melanie and Bill shared their deep commitment to Christ. They served together on mission trips to Columbia and worked tirelessly to help others through the daily journey of recovery with numerous recovery centers. Bill taught Melanie to hunt and this shared love of the sport led them on many amazing trips including several to South Africa.

Melanie was preceded in death by her parents Herman and Peggy Piner. She is survived by her daughter Heather Mangum-Barnes (husband Don; grandchildren: Tyler, Cameron, Griffin & Ava), and her son Matthew McClain (wife Jennifer; grandchildren: Laura, Mathew & Nick). She is also survived by her sisters Melinda Fawcett (Brad) and Melissa Dirksen (Bruce) and many beloved nieces and nephews. All of whom will miss Melanie dearly every day.

Celebration of Melanie’s life will be held at Vineyard Church of Jackson in Flowood, MS on Friday, December 9th, 2022. Visitation will be at 4pm and services at 5pm. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in her name to American Cancer Society, an organization Melanie felt strongly about in hopes of a cure being found soon. Please make the donation by visiting https://donate3.cancer.org/ or calling (800)-227-2345.

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