Louis Twells Parker, Jr.
September 14, 1936 — May 27, 2024
Charleston
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Louis Twells Parker, Jr.
Louis was born in Charleston on September 14, 1936, the son of the late Louis Twells Parker and Josephine Trenholm Walker Parker. He received his early education in Charleston, followed by three years at Woodbery Forest School in Virginia, graduating in 1954. Louis attended The University of the South (Sewanee), where he majored in mathematics and was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity. With an excellent academic record, he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, graduated magna cum laude, and was valedictorian of the class of 1958. Louis was also awarded a Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship for graduate study.
At Sewanee Louis was in the Air Force ROTC, becoming its cadet commander. After a deferment for further study in mathematics at the University of NC, he was commissioned as an officer in the USAF and assigned to the Special Weapons Center in Albuquerque. The valuable experience he gained in his three years there, using early mainframe computers to calculate missile trajectories, led to his eventual career in the emerging field of information technology.
After the Air Force, Louis spent four years developing software for the Auerbach Corporation in Washington DC. In 1966 he was chosen to be Director of a grant-funded pioneering venture, the North Carolina Computer Orientation Project, with the mission of introducing the use of computing to all colleges and universities in the state and providing them with computer service from the large mainframe at Triangle Universities Computation Center. This project, linking almost all public and private universities, community colleges, and many county libraries, established the first statewide computer network for higher education, and became the model for similar regional networks in other parts of the country.
Later in his career, Louis served as Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs in the central administration of the 16-campus University of North Carolina system and as a member of the President’s staff.
In 1996 Louis married Eleanor Laurens Hastie of Charleston. Upon retirement, he returned to his beloved Low Country, spending the remainder of his life with Eleanor in their native city and at a second home on Wadmalaw Island, where he enjoyed boating, water sports, and outdoor life in general. He and Eleanor also spent time every summer in the mountains of NC, dedicating time to hiking and exploring the grandeur of the natural world. Wherever he was, Louis always enjoyed playing his guitar and singing folk songs.
Louis was a member of the Charleston Club, the Society of Colonial Wars, the St. Cecilia Society, the Society for the Preservation of Spirituals, St. Philips Church, the Agricultural Society of SC, and Sea Island Yacht Club.
He is survived by his wife Eleanor; his daughter from an earlier marriage, Elizabeth Lawrence Parker of Cary, NC and Austin TX; and a brother, Randolph Parker of Bloomington Indiana.
Memorials may be made to St. Philip’s Church, 142 Church Street, Charleston, SC 29401.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Louis Twells Parker, Jr., please visit our flower store.
Past Services
Graveside Service
Wednesday, June 12, 2024
11:00am - 12:00 pm (Eastern time)
Magnolia Cemetery
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