Ana Maria Ferran Parent Obituary (1944 - 2015)

Ana Maria Ferrn Parent, Ph.D., age 70, of Normal, passed away Sunday, April 5, 2015 at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center, Bloomington.Her funeral will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 11, 2015 at Epiphany Catholic Church, Normal. Burial will be at East Lawn Memorial Gardens, Bloomington. Visitation will be from 4-7 p.m. Friday, April 10, 2015, at Carmody-Flynn Funeral Home, Bloomington. Additional visitation will be for hour prior to services at the church. To express condolences online, please visit www.carmodyflynn.com.In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Illinois State University Foundation for the Josefina Ferrn Scholarship for Latino Arts Students.Ana was born May 10, 1944 in Havana, Cuba, a daughter of Alberto Ferrn and Josefina Gutirrez. She married David Joseph Parent, Ph.D., on May 2, 1970. He preceded her in death on December 24, 1997. In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents.Surviving are her sons, David Alberto (Shawn Marie Pelak) Parent of Ann Arbor, MI, Michael Joseph (Leslie Dady) Parent, Ph.D., of Lake Elmo, MN and Robert Rafael (Jennifer) Parent of Bloomington; two grandchildren, William David Parent and Emily Marie Parent; a brother, Alberto Ferrn of Lubbock, TX; and a niece, Ana Ferrn, and nephew, Alberto Ferrn, both of Lubbock, TX. Also surviving are dear friends Joseph Laurenti, Ph.D.; the family of the late Donald and Frances McHugh: Christine McHugh, Michael McHugh, Anne Schneider, and Jean Papagni; and Carmela Ferradans, Ph.D., Alejo Gonzalez and Emma Gonzalez.Ana came to the United States in 1962 as an eighteen year-old participant in a program called Operation Pedro Pan (Peter Pan), an initiative led by the Catholic Church to spare children of the ideological indoctrination of the new communist government in Cuba. Her parents came to the U.S. four years later.Travelling with her sixteen year-old brother, Alberto, not speaking English, and with only one suitcase apiece, Ana and Alberto survived this tumultuous transition together and eventually settled at Guardian Angel Orphanage Home in Peoria, where they both attended and graduated from high school.Thanks to the priests at the orphanage who provided encouragement and assistance, Ana was able to enroll at Illinois State University, where she graduated with a B.A. in 1969 and a M.A. in 1970. Ana remained close friends with many fellow students she met while attending ISU. Ana went on to complete her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, in 1976. She would not see her beloved country of origin again, but was proud to have become a United States citizen.A natural born teacher, Mrs. Parent held numerous teaching positions in the Bloomington-Normal area, including as a professor at both Illinois State University and Illinois Wesleyan University, an instructor for the Illinois Department of Corrections, and a teacher at numerous levels in the Bloomington Public Schools where she retired in 2004. Throughout her teaching career, Ana received numerous accolades for performance in the classroom and was a highly sought after teacher by her students, many of whom maintained contact with Mrs. Parent years after completing her courses.In her nearly 50 years living in Normal, Ana actively gave her time and energy to a variety of non-profit organizations and charities. She also provided financial and personal assistance to many individuals in need, especially among the immigrant population in the Twin Cities. She will be greatly missed by her many friends, students, and family.