Fifth annual Kyle Parker Invitational Swim Meet to be held this weekend

MADISON — A little more than five years have passed since the unexpected death of Madison’s beloved aquatics director, Kyle Parker, and his memory will continue to live on through the fifth annual Kyle Parker Invitational Swim Meet slated for this weekend at Dublin Park.

Parker died in December 2014 when his SUV went down an embankment off of Zierdt Road and crashed. He was 30 years old and had been serving as the city’s aquatics director for about four years at the time of his death. He left behind a host of friends and family, including his mother, Paula Parker (Parcus); father, Terry Parker; stepmother, Linda; and two sisters, Ashley and Katie.

Kyle Parker

The first Kyle Parker Invitational Swim Meet was held in January 2015 and has been held each year since in his honor.

“This time of year, it’s a blessing to go up there and just be honored by them to recognize Kyle,” said Terry Parker, Kyle’s father. “This is year five, and I just don’t ever want to let his memories die or go away.”

Both Terry and Paula expressed a great deal of pride in their son and his accomplishments but spoke most highly of the impact he had on his community.

“He was deeply loved by everyone,” Terry said. “He was a good boy. I’m certainly proud of him myself. … Kyle helped everyone, and that’s what made me so proud—he’s well-respected throughout the whole community. It’s daily that I have conversations with different people, and it’s very rare that his name doesn’t come up in those conversations.”

“Kyle had a smile that he walked into a room, and just everybody knew he was there,” Paula recalled. “… Kyle’s dad and I had no idea how many lives that he had touched in his 30 years on this earth.”

Paula said she heard “so many stories” about “Mr. Kyle” from children who met him through his work with Dublin Park and the aquatics program. This began long before Parker’s service as aquatics director, though. His work with Dublin began as a lifeguard when he was just 15 years old, and Paula said he became quite close over the years with others who worked in Madison’s Parks and Recreation Department, including Kory Alfred and Gayle Milam.

“It wasn’t just a job for Kyle,” Paula said. “His heart and soul was in Dublin.”

His love and dedication to his work led Parker to receive the Employee of the Year award in 2012.

According to Terry, Parker also stayed busy assisting with plans and proposals to build a new natatorium in the area. “That was all taking place right there at the time when his accident happened,” he added. “He was putting in a lot of man hours trying to get that prepared.”

This year, to commemorate the fifth year of the swim meet, Paula and Terry have had a special plaque made in Kyle’s honor to be presented at the swim meet. Madison’s previous mayor, Troy Trulock, will be returning to do the honors. The dedication will take place Saturday beginning at about 9:45 a.m. with the meet taking place shortly after. 

Trulock was serving as mayor of Madison during the time of Parker’s death.

“He stood on Zierdt Road the night we were waiting on Kyle to be pulled out of the ravine with me and his dad,” Paula recalled.

Terry called Trulock and the rest of the City a “blessing” to them following the tragedy.

“Anything that we needed they were able to provide for us, and it just made things somewhat easier,” he said.

At Parker’s funeral, Paula said Madison’s police and fire departments honored him by standing at attention.

The swim team also gives back a towel each year at the swim meet monogrammed with Kyle’s name. Terry adds these towels to a trophy case that is displayed during the swim meet each year in the front entryway of the Dublin Park facility. This case is also filled with other memorabilia of Parker, including his Employee of the Year plaque.

Terry and Paula said Kyle’s family is “honored” and “thankful” to the City of Madison and the Madison Swimming Association for carrying on Kyle’s name and legacy through the swim meet.

“They’ve made things very comforting for me and his mother because of the fact that they honor him with such grace,” Terry said. “It helps. It helps emotionally and just keeping the remembrance of Kyle Parker alive. It just helps out greatly, and I certainly appreciate it.”

On their Facebook page, Madison Parks and Recreation said that the Dublin Park facility will be closed for the Kyle Parker Invitational Swim Meet from Friday, Jan. 18, at 1 p.m. until Sunday evening, Jan. 20. They added that the Dublin “outdoor” pool will be open during the event for the general public to use during the indoor pool’s regular business hours. For more information, call 256-270-3352.