Thomas Peter Parke Jr. "Bud", was born in St. Anthony, Idaho, on January 29, 1924, to Thomas Peter Parke and Grace Godfrey Parke. Since he had the same name as his father, everyone called him Bud. He grew up in St. Anthony and was a life-long resident, referring to it as "God's Country." Bud grew up hunting and fishing and spent practically his entire life at it, and passed these skills on to many others. He graduated from St. Anthony High School in 1941.

Bud met Marie Mariah Hope at a dance at the Venice Dance Hall north of St. Anthony. They were married in Rigby, Idaho, on November 23, 1942. They had a double wedding along with his best friend Melvin Davenport and Nadine Scheets. Bud and Marie lived in St. Anthony and then on a ranch on the Fall River until he was drafted into the Army. He served from 1943 to 1945 in the European Theatre in Germany and France, where he learned construction skills building bridges for the troops to cross the rivers.

Bud put his skills to good use after the War by building homes in St. Anthony for himself and Marie and for his parents. He also built houses with Marie's father and brothers in the Columbia Basin in Washington for a couple of years.

They spent the remainder of their lives in St. Anthony where Bud worked at the reform school as the Maintenance Foreman for many years until his retirement. He was on the City Council in St. Anthony and also served as a local judge. Bud was a perfectionist in everything he did. Besides hunting and fishing, he tied flies, snowmobiled, rode motorcycles and four-wheelers, helped his sons with their building projects, and read thousands of books.

Bud died at home September 3, 2010. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife Marie, his half-brothers Harold and Ross Parker, and his grand-daughter Tess Parke. He is survived by sons and daughters-in-law David and Mary Lou and Stacy and Jessica, of St. Anthony; grandchildren Wyatt Parke of Boise, Ryan Parke of Clear Lake, California, and Nana Stephens of Alpine, Wyoming; a great-grandson, Josiah Thomas Wenner of Boise; and his faithful dog, Mocha.

Funeral services will be Tuesday, September 7th, at Bert Flamm Mortuary, 581 East 1st north, St. Anthony, at 11:00 a.m. Visitation will be one hour prior to the services at the mortuary. Burial will be in the Wilford Cemetery with military rites by the VFW.