July 2023 Honor A Deceased Veteran – Michael E. Parrow, Sr.

JULY 2023 HONOR-A-DECEASED-VETERAN

MICHAEL E. PARROW, SR.
1954-2019

FAMILY HISTORY:
Michael E. Parrow, Sr. was born on October 3, 1954 in Troy, New York to James and Lois (Evans) Parrow, Sr., and was the brother of James, Jr.

EDUCATION:
Michael resided in Troy, New York with his family and attended Sacred Heart School, Troy Public School 16 and later graduated from LaSalle Institute in 1973.

HISTORY:
On June 30, 1973, Michael enlisted in the United States Army in Albany, New York. He received his basic training, and then went on to attend Military Police School before being assigned to United States Army Europe and Africa as an MP with the 529^th MP Co HQ. Michael was honorably discharged from the United States Army with the rank of Specialist Fourth Class on June 23, 1976 at Fort Dix, New Jersey. For his service, Michael was awarded the National Defense Service Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the Expert Marksman Badge with Grenade Bar, the Marksman Badge with .45 Cal Bar and Pistol Bar and the Sharpshooter Badge with M-16 Bar.

PERSONAL:
On October 6, 1979, Michael married his wife, Susan Carpentier at St. Bonaventure Church in Speigletown, New York. Together they had three loving children: Michael, Jr., Joshua and Alison, and grandchildren: Remi and Maddox.

WORK EXPERIENCE:
Michael began his civilian career in law enforcement when he joined the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Department after returning to civilian life. After seven proud years with the Sheriff’s Department, Michael began his employment with the Troy Police Department in 1983. Throughout his career, Michael served as everything from a patrolman to evidence technician. He was promoted to Sergeant in 2003 and assigned to the Detective Bureau in 2005, where he spent the remainder of his career until his retirement in 2018. Some of his many accomplishments with the Troy Police Department include the Silver Shield and the John J. Givney “Officer of the Year” award.

In addition to working for the Police Department, Michael also served as the Rensselaer County Health Department’s medicolegal death investigator from January 7, 2002 until his passing. Michael was a pillar of the County’s Medical Examiner’s Office program and a founding father of the way the program functions today.

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES/ORGANIZATIONS:
Michael was always an active member of his community and making a difference on people’s lives. In his spare time, he loved assisting in local youth sports, whether it was  Lansingburgh Little League or Pop Warner Football, he was there coaching, running chains, administering or simply providing rides to and from practice. He also held various positions with Pop Warner Football over the years, including Commissioner, Capital District President and a member of the Eastern Region staff.

Sadly, on October 13, 2019, Michael passed away.

Honor A Deceased Veteran Ceremony will be held in the Legislative Chambers of the Rensselaer County Legislature.

**Please note the new location:  99 Troy Road, East Greenbush, N.Y. 12061.

For questions or application information, please contact the Legislature at 518-270-2880.