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Walker County Soldier Laid to Rest
During the service, his friends and family talked about his sacrifice and service to his country. But they focused on their memories of the loving prankster they knew as "Dusty" and the legacy he leaves behind for his four year old son.
"There is no way in the world we'll never be ever to answer the question, 'Why? Why Dusty?,'" said Major General James Myles of the U.S. Army.
Cpl. Parrish was supposed to come home in a month not now or resting beneath the flag he served under as an army medic.
"This last week, I've not had the ability to pray. They tell me that's normal. God has my son watching over me. When I feel I can't go on, I see his smile and feel his strength and hear him say, "Mom, it's okay,'" said Tina Rigsby, Cpl. Parrish's mother.
Tears rolled down the face of Cpl. Parrish's son, Caden, as his grandfather and a young boy tried to console him.
Even in that moment, there were some smiles.
"We all know he was a prankster. His dad asked me if his son was really buff. He wanted to know if he really could bench 364. I think he wanted to make sure Dusty wasn't pulling his leg," read Major General Myles from a letter written by one of Cpl. Parrish's fellow soldiers.
"It was always goofing around and smiling more than crying," recalled Lucas Lee Herron, Cpl. Parrish's friend.
Cpl. Parrish helped Herron cancer and nursed his fellow men to health.
Herron even remembers when Cpl. Parrish covered his brother's bedroom in Vaseline as a joke.
Those things and a few pranks weren't forgotten by his fellow soldiers in Iraq who lined the hospital hallway after the bombing, wanting to donate blood. And they certainly won't be forgotten by his family or his son.
"I want him to know everything about his dad. the good, the bad. i just want him to know his father," said Herron.
Cpl. Parrish was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
A member of the Alabama National Guard presented him with the Distinguished Medal of Honor.
He also received a commendation from Governor Bob Riley.
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