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Show Honored On Her 80th Anniversary I 1 i ,Jf u & s FLORENCE H. PARKIN Florence Hatch Parkin observed ob-served her 80th birthday, October Oc-tober 1, 1977 with a gathering of her family at the home of one of her sons. MRS. PARKIN is a descendant descen-dant of distinguished ancestors ances-tors and mother to accomplished ac-complished children. Her first ancestor in America was the noted William Bradford, signer of the Mayflower Compact in 1620 and governor of Plymouth Colony for thirty-two years. Bradford's great-great-granddaughter. Wealthy Bradford, married Ira Sterns Hatch, both of whom were converts to Mor-monism Mor-monism in New York in 1832. Ira and his family eventually even-tually moved to Nauvoo where he served in the School of the Prophets and in the Nauvoo Legion at the time of the martyrdom of Joseph Smith, the Mormon founder. Ira's son Orin, who was Florence's grandfather, served at the age of sixteen in the Mormon Battalion. ARRIVING in Utah after the Battalion was disbanded in California, Orin traveled to Bountiful where he settled in 1848. His future father-in-law, John Perry, whose daughter Elizabeth, Orin later married, assisted Perrigrene Sessions in 1847 in settling Bountiful. Orin's first child was Orin Perry. During the first winter in Bountiful, Sessions lived in a dugout across the street from Mrs. Parkin's present residence at 285 West 200 North in Bountiful. FLORENCE was born October Oc-tober 1, 1897, to Orin Perry Hatch and Marinda Woodward. Wood-ward. She was the youngest of 12 children, 6 boys and six girls. She was born in South Bountiful. Her father was a prominent church leader (a member of the Davis Stake High Council for sixteen years), member of the Utah Legislature (1900 to 1903), and an officer of Deseret Livestock Company. She married Kimball Mann Parkin in the Salt Lake Temple in March 29, 1917. After having lived in various places in northern Utah, they returned to Bountiful and raised their seven sons during the years of the Great Depression and World War II. Although Mr. Parkin engaged in several occupations from raising sheep to working for the Davis County Road Department, he was a pipe fitter by profession. Among other jobs he supervised several WPA and PWA projects during the 1930's. MRS. PARKIN had many struggles, but non equaled her sacrifices during the war years. She and Mr. Parkin had five sons who served in the armed forces during World War II. Kimball Hatch, their oldest son, served in Hawaii and The Philippines; Orin Hatch served with the Army in Texas, The Philippines and Korea; Glenn Hatch, who served in the Navy, survived the sinking of two vessels the heavy cruiser . Northhampton which was sunk off Guadalcanal in 1942 and the destroyer Hoel, sunk off Samar, The Philippines in 1944. He received the Purple Heart for surviving shrapnel wounds during the sinking of the latter ship. WALLACE Hatch, the fourth son, served in the Army in France. He lost his leg which was amputated at the thigh after receiving wounds suffered at a battle at Colmar Pocket, France in 1945. George Arnold, the last of the five sons to serve, enlisted into the Navy and was trained as a cook. After the discontinuation of hostilities, hostili-ties, he received orders to go overseas. While traveling home for a short visit, he was killed in an automobile accident ac-cident in Nevada, July 4, 1947. The entire family had fortunately for-tunately previously gathered together for the first time in several years at Mr. and Mrs. Parkin's 30th wedding anniversary an-niversary the previous March. MRS. PARKIN'S husband served as a pipe fitter for the Department of the Navy at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack on Dec. 7, 1941. He survived that attack with only receiving bullets passing through his trousers. Mrs. Parkin constructed the family home during the absence ab-sence of her husband and older sons during the war years. Besides her family, she has had many interests in life: over the years, she has enjoyed en-joyed gardening and genealogy. And she is occasionally oc-casionally seen taking surplus fruits and vegetables to her neighbors to enjoy them with her. BESIDES THE death of her son George, Mrs. Parkin lost her husband in 1951 and her son Kimball in 1974. After the death of her husband, she worked at Hill Field for 13 years. Orin is currently a trucking firm's dispatcher in Salt Lake City; Glenn, who is active as a chief petty officer in the Navy reserve, is currently a pipe fitter at Husky Oil Refining Company. Wallace is a clerk for the Utah Highway Department-Dr. Department-Dr. Max H. Parkin, the sixth son, is a historian and instructor in-structor at the Salt Lake LDS Institute of Religion; and Bruce Woodward Parkin is the investment analyst for the Utah State Retirement Board Mrs. Parkin is pleased that although her last two sons did not serve in the military, they I both served missions for the LDS Church. BESIDES her own children. Mrs. Parkin has 22 grandchildren and 12 greatgrandchildren. |