Parker Towle

1933 - 2025

Parker Towle

Whitefield, NH - Parker Allen Towle was born the only child of Berton Gifford and Pearl Agnes Towle on December 6, 1933, in Holden, MA and died peacefully on May 24, 2025, at The Summit by Morrison in Whitefield, NH. Parker was an honored gentleman, devoted husband, loyal friend, and energetic father. As a man of deep heart and faith, Parker was a longtime member of the Franconia Community Church of Christ. Parker and Phyllis conducted medical missions with Honduras Hope. Parker was a passionate physician and always doing something: healing people, splitting wood, writing cookbooks or poems, reading poetry, and serving dinner to his beloved.

In his youth, Parker enjoyed riding his bike to play piano at a friend's house, hiking with his parents, or fishing the forbidden pond. Admired by his peers, he was president of his high school class, baseball player, and football captain. Parker graduated Yale University with a degree in English where he helped found the still active a capella singing group, The Duke's Men. Upon graduating college, Parker married his high school sweetheart, Phyllis Ann Bartlett, whom he adored for their 70 married years together. After attending the University of Vermont Medical School, he did his internship as Navy lieutenant in Bethesda, MD and Jacksonville, FL, followed by his residency at Yale.

As a clinical neurological pioneer, Parker was the second on Boston's South Shore, practicing and teaching neurology at thirteen different MA hospitals. He built a private practice in Norwood, MA while raising 4 kids in Westwood, MA. When his youngest child graduated from high school, Parker fulfilled a life-long dream of living in the mountains around Easton, NH, which to him was "paradise." He became the first neurologist in New Hampshire's North Country travelling the width from Littleton to Berlin to North Conway. He had a private practice and helped open a free local clinic before joining the staff at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.

For recreation, he indulged his passions, including skiing, hiking, and winter camping in the White Mountains of NH and Green Mountains of VT. He cooked delicious meals for loved ones, played competitive racquetball, and walked with family and friends. Engaging in sports with abandon, he also found special joy in watching the New England Patriots play football. He played softball after work, was fiercely competitive at racquetball, organized week-long cycling trips, and co-founded the Frontiersmen at Camp Pinnacle in Lyme, NH.

The arc of their life was sprinkled liberally with far off destinations. Their most beloved hikes were coast-to-coast in Northern England, Offa's Dyke in Wales, the Dordogne Valley of France, Josh Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands (returning nearly every year), Amelia Island, and other FL beaches.

Intellectual pursuits and teaching motivated Parker as well. While working full-time (finally retiring at age 80), Parker earned a Masters in Fine Arts for poetry at Vermont College. He taught at Harvard Medical School and Dartmouth Medical School while presenting papers as an active member of the Clinical Society of Neurologists. He wrote poetry, completing 6 self-published books along with many poems published in outdoor magazines. The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keeler featured his poem Cases in January 2007. On the board of directors of The Frost Place in Franconia, NH, he managed the poetry signs on the nature walk and hosted poetry readings, and generally took care of things.

Parker was first and foremost a family man. He is survived by his wife, four children: Peter G., Daniel P., David B. and Elizabeth S. Towle, and by his four grandchildren: Matthew, Stewart, Jessica, and Morgan.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, May 31, 2025, at the Franconia Community Church of Christ in Franconia, NH at 11:00am. In lieu of flowers, donations are gratefully accepted to the Franconia Community Church of Christ.