On Monday, the Parker House Sausage Co. said final goodbyes to its CEO Maurice McFolling at a funeral service held at Apostolic Church of God. McFolling, who headed the South Side business since 2005, was 81.
On Monday, the Parker House Sausage Co. said final goodbyes to its CEO Maurice McFolling at a funeral service held at Apostolic Church of God. McFolling, who headed the South Side business since 2005, was 81.
He died Nov. 17 when he suffered a heart attack and never recovered.
“He had a heart attack and his blood pressure went way up until doctors could not get it down” McFolling’s widow, Belinda, told the Defender. “He loved his Parker House and Chicago. You could not get him to move out of the city or take a vacation to save your life.”
McFolling, stepson of the company’s founder, became CEO when then-CEO Daryl Grisham died.
Speculation that Parker House, the only Black-owned sausage manufacturer in the country, would be sold in light of McFolling’s death is not true, company officials said.
“Parker House isn’t going anywhere. We are a Black and family-owned company and that’s the way it will stay,” Judge Parker Jr., 51, son of the founder and vice president of Parker House Sausage, told the Defender. “If anything we may try to expand on our property but there are no plans to leave Bronzeville.”
The company has been located in the Bronzeville community at 4605 S. State St. since its 1919 inception when the late Judge Henry Parker founded it.
Parker said he would be running the company until the board of directors meets to select a permanent replacement for McFolling.
“When Mr. Grisham passed away that was our wake up call. We knew then that we need to have a transition plan in place should it happen again,” Parker said. “Mr. McFolling’s death was unexpected but things were already in place to keep the company should something happen, so we are in transition mode right now but nothing has changed.”
In a July interview, McFolling’s last one with the Defender, McFolling said he was concerned that if the company had to relocate due to the rapid housing expansion in the area that the shareholders would opt to sell the company instead.
“I do not want to sell but if we have to finance our own relocation then we would have no choice but to sell,” said McFolling previously.
Michael Parker and Regina Parker, children of the late founder, are the company’s shareholders, along with Judge Parker.
Alderman Pat Dowell, whose 3rd Ward includes Parker House, said McFolling’s passing is “a tremendous loss for the African American community.”
After growing up in Peoria, McFolling came to Chicago as a teenager in the late 1940s and his mother Elsie married Judge Henry Parker. And after serving in the Navy McFolling began working at Parker House
He is survived by his wife, Belinda; and daughters, Robin McFolling-Allen and Cheryl McFolling-Carron.
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