Colette Parkins

Colette Keller Parkins, 73, of Greeneville, Tennessee, passed peacefully at her home on February 7, 2026. Born in Kingsport, Tennessee, Colette was the daughter of the late Claire and Kenneth Keller. Colette carried the warmth of East Tennessee with her everywhere she went, and for decades she gave that warmth away freely, one child, one friend, one small kindness at a time.

Colette devoted more than 35 years to the Greene County School System as a kindergarten teacher and early childhood educator. Teaching was not simply her job, it was her calling. She held a master's degree in Education from East Tennessee State University, and she brought both skill and heart into every classroom. Colette had a special way of seeing the children who were struggling, the ones who needed a little more patience, a little more attention, a little more belief. She chose them, again and again. While others might chase the top of the class, Colette poured herself into the least fortunate and the farthest behind, making sure they were not forgotten and never made to feel small. Many families in Greene County will never fully know how much she helped shape their child's beginning, but her imprint is there all the same.

To know Colette was to know kindness with backbone. She was generous, intelligent, and unfailingly funny, with a deep sense of humor and a contagious smile that could lift an entire room. She had that rare gift of being the life of the party while also being the person you could call when life stopped being funny. She valued honesty, good manners, and doing the right thing, not the easy thing. She believed in forgiveness, and she lived it.

Colette loved animals fiercely, especially her dogs, with a soft spot for Jack Russell terriers, and she carried a lifelong love for Arabian horses. She found joy in cooking, traveling, and the familiar comfort of her favorite shows, including QVC. She also loved trivia night with her friends, coming for the laughs and staying for the satisfaction of being right at least once a round. The beach was another happy place for her, where she could trade schedules and responsibilities for salt air, sunshine, and the simple peace of being near the water. At home, she took the same steady care with her fish pond, tending it with patience and attention. If you were lucky enough to sit at her table, you probably remember it, especially her trifle cake, her marble cheesecake, and the kind of roast and potatoes that could make a hard day feel survivable.

She showed love through humor, acts of service, tough love when needed, thoughtful gifts, generosity, and self-sacrifice. She was the foundation of her family, a peacemaker, a faithful companion to many, and an advocate for those who needed someone in their corner.

Colette is survived by her son, Garren Parkins, and daughter-in-law, Linsey Parkins, and by her grandsons, Wyatt Parkins and Boone Parkins, who brought her enormous pride and joy. She is also survived by her sister, Kathrine Keller Smithwick; her niece, Laura Smithwick Airhart; and her nephew, Daniel Smithwick. Colette is lovingly remembered by her close friends Eddie Parkins, Darlene McCleish, John Brown, Steve and Adrienne Long, Lynn and Kathy Scott, Spencer and Lois Smith, Elizabeth Smith, Mary Mitchell, Cookie Combs, Patsy Barger, and David Johnson, along with countless others whose lives were brighter because she was in them.

There will be a gathering of friends from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon on Saturday, February 14, 2026, at Jeffers Funeral and Cremation Service Downtown. A Celebration of Life service will follow at 12:00 noon in the funeral home chapel. Colette will be laid to rest at Zion Cemetery in Baileyton.

In Colette's spirit, please come as you are, and bring your favorite story of her to share with her son, Garren. Those stories, the laughter, and the love they carry are the kind of legacy she spent her whole life building.