December 28, 1941 - May 18, 2024

Chester Max Parnell, 82, passed away on May 18, 2024, at Methodist North Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. The son of Chester C. ''Check'' and Hazel Irene Best Parnell was born in Buford, Arkansas, on December 28, 1941. He married Sharon Sue McCracken on December 2, 1967, in Mabelvale, Arkansas.

Max was a 1959 graduate of Mountain Home High School. He was one of the first two members of the Mountain Home FFA chapter to earn the American Farmer Degree. He attended Arkansas Tech and graduated from the University of Arkansas, and he did some additional graduate work at the University of Missouri.

He taught vocational agriculture for one year at Summersville, Missouri. He then started working for the USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service, Cotton Division. He was assigned to various locations, but the bulk of his career was spent in Greenwood, Mississippi, and Memphis, Tennessee. Max served in various capacities in the Cotton Division including field representative, cotton classer, and cotton classer supervisor; however, the bulk of his career involved market news and spot cotton quotations. He retired on December 31, 1999, after 35 ½ years of service. He was Assistant Chief of the Market News Branch at the time of his retirement.

Survivors include his son and daughter-in-law, Jarred and Sarah Parnell, of Austin, Texas; two nephews; and three nieces. He was preceded in death by his wife, parents, and sister Sue Fletcher.

A visitation will be from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, at Roller Funeral Home in Mountain Home. Funeral services will be at 11:00 am on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, at the Roller Funeral Home Chapel. Interment will follow in Baxter Memorial Gardens.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Galatia Cemetery Association, P.O. Box 103, Norfork, AR 72658; or to a church of the donor's choice.

Obituary Provided By:
Roller Funeral Home
Highway 5 North
Mountain Home, AR  72654
www.rollerfuneralhomes.com