SHARON (STAMPE) PARKER
Western Canada High, Calgary

I finished high school (grade 12) in Calgary at Western Canada High and then worked for a year at Alberta Government Telephones ("Operator ... may I help you?")  Went through a life-changing experience spiritually ("born again!") and went off to Bible College at Prairie Bible Institute in Three Hills, Alberta for four years and took an Education minor.

I met my husband, Ray Parker, at PBI in my second year and we were married in 1968.  We went into missionary work with The Shantymen's Christian Association for ten years.  This is an itinerant minister's job as Ray traveled amongst the loggers and miners and hermits living in "shanties" and shared his faith and lots of elbow grease.  He married and buried and ministered to a lot of people who had no formal Church and then in the summers we would go into the little communities as a family and have Vacation Bible Schools with puppets, songs, stories and crafts.  It was during these ten years I really honed my puppetry skills and after several additional puppetry workshops, I started teaching seminars myself.  Puppetry is a big part of my job description here in Kamloops as Children's Librarian today.

During those ten years we had three children.  Stan was born in 1970, Hannah in 1973 and Wesley in 1975.  (I tell folks we had one boy, one girl and one Wesley since he was so unique).

I continued my love for music and drama during all these years and raised three very musical and dramatic children.  In fact Wes majored in Music when he got his Bachelor's Degree and is working in the film industry in Vancouver today.

In 1978 Ray took a position with the Provincial Government as as a prison Chaplain in Campbell River, B.C. at the Lakeview Youth Camp and after three years there we transferred back here to Kamloops and the Kamloops Regional Correctional Center where has served ever since.

In 1983 my children were all settled in school and I started to work part time here at the North Kamloops Library in Children's Services and then ten years later went full time.  Twenty years later I can say that I have the best job there is ... working with children and books.  I have four preschool Storytimes a week (80 children), do School Tours, Puppet Shows, Reader's Advisory, Summer Reading Programs, purchase books, etc., etc. ... it's GREAT!  I still sing, alone and with choirs in churches and in local musicals.

My children are all grown and gone now ... Stan is a Youth Pastor in Campbell River Baptist Church and he and his wife have given us three wonderful (repeat ... WONDERFUL!) grandchildren.  Hannah is married and she and Randy live in Vancouver where he manages an Earl's Restaurant and she teaches Music for Young Children in her home and at the University Preschool.  As I mentioned earlier, Wes is also in Vancouver, acting and paying the bills with a regular paycheck from Starbucks.

That's about it ... a full and fulfilled life since I left St. Bruno, so many years ago.