On March 15, 1961, Parrett, then 22 years old, jumped into the Great Miami River to help rescue a 4-year-old boy from drowning and was awarded the Carnegie Hero Fund award.
“He’s my hero,” said his son, Arnold D. Parrett. “He defines what it means to be a hero.”
Parrett was standing near the Great Miami River when he saw a motor boat float over the dam. There were three people in the boat, including David L. VanOflen, 4, and his father. Parrett jumped into the river ahead of the capsized boat and helped pull the boy to shore.
All three people in the boat were rescued.
During the water rescue, Parrett went under several times and told his family he saw his life like “a camera flash,” his son said. Parrett was hospitalized two days and recovered.
Another man who jumped into the river to save the boaters died. When James G. Combs saw the boat that was being swept away by the fast current, he ran to the bank, removed his jacket and shirt, and entered the 39-degree water wearing heavy leather boots.
After swimming more than 1,100 feet in pursuit of the boy, who was wearing a life jacket, Combs sank and remained submerged. Nearly four weeks later, Combs’ body was found 30 miles downstream. He was 26.
Combs Park in Hamilton is named in his honor.
Meanwhile, another man who was with Parrett, took his clothes to Parrett’s house and told his wife, Donna, he jumped into the river. The man left and didn’t explain why Parrett jumped into the icy water. His wife thought he committed suicide, his son said.
Hearing the news, Donna, pregnant with a son, went into premature labor and was rushed to Fort Hamilton Hospital where she delivered her son two months early, he said.
Parrett retired from Beckett Paper Co. after 32 years of service and was a member of the North Fairfield Baptist Church.
His family said he loved to travel, whether by bus, plane, car, or cruise ship.
“He loved life and lived it,” his son said. “He never met a stranger and everybody was a friend he hadn’t met.”
He’s survived by a daughter, Dreama Barnes (Calvin); son, Arnold Dwayne Parrett (Tracey); three grandchildren, Timothy Carpenter (Lindsey), Dustin Parrett (Shelby), and Jody Bevenger; four great-grandchildren, Andrew, Ethan, and Bella Carpenter, and Grahm Parrett.
He’s also survived by his longtime friend, Sharon McCracken, and her family.
Parrett was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Donna; and sister, Butella Parsley.
A visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at Webb Noonan Kidd Funeral Home, Ross Avenue at South “D” Street, Hamilton. A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home. Interment will follow in Millville Cemetery.
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