“Rise, together we rise.”
The words rang through the Buell Theatre on Friday as the crowd stood, clapping along with the beat and swaying to the live music of the Flobots.
Anyone outside would assume it was just another concert. What was really happening inside was a memorial service for political consultant John Parr; his wife, journalist Sandra Widener; and their 19-year-old daughter, Chase Parr. The three died in an automobile accident in December.
Another daughter, Katy, 17, survived the crash and has been recovering with relatives in Boise, Idaho.
“I wish I didn’t have to follow that,” Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said of the Flobots’ performance. “John and Sandy would have loved that.”
More than 1,500 people gathered to celebrate the lives of Parr, Widener and Chase and to show their support for Katy.
Parr was an activist who helped lead the effort to prevent the 1976 Winter Olympics from coming to Colorado and later was president of the National Civic League. Widener was co-founder of Westword and a former reporter at The Denver Post and Newsday.
David Greenberg, a friend of the family, spoke of “John the family man, John the civic leader and John the visionary.”
The sentiment was echoed by many friends and family members. The man who loved his cowboy boots and bolo ties was just as comfortable talking about hatha yoga and environmentalism, Greenberg said.
While the portrait of John Parr reflected his diversity, the image presented of Widener was more focused.
“Much about what you need to know about Sandy could be found in her kitchen,” said Lisa Farber Miller, a close friend. “We always tried recipes we had never made because Sandy loved a challenge. She was fearless.”
Chase Parr, a sophomore at Wesleyan University at the time of her death, reflected many of the characteristics of her parents and their joy for living, her friend Madeleine Joyce said in the “love song” she wrote and performed in honor of Chase.
Kendall McKinnon, Chase Parr’s roommate at Wesleyan, also recalled Chase’s magnetic personality.
“The saying, ‘You don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone,’ did not apply to Chase Parr. I always knew exactly what I had and how lucky I was.”
Though the celebration of life was in memory of the three lost, many of those who spoke directed their comments at the survivor sitting in the fourth row.
“Look around you today, Katy. All these people here — this is our embrace of you,” Gov. Bill Ritter said.
At the end of the memorial service, Helen Katich, a friend of Katy Parr, offered a reminder to the crowd.
“If there’s any message we want to get across in the next two minutes, it’s that we still have our Katy Parr,” she said. “Through you, we have your family.”
Jenel Stelton-Holtmeier: 303-954-1661 or jsteltonholtmeier@denverpost.com
