Teaneck Mayor Lizette Parker, 44: She Dedicated Her Life To Serving Others

Editor’s note: The information in the following obituary was first published on the Volk Leber Funeral Home’s website. Parker died Sunday at Holy Name Hospital after she was admitted with respiratory issues.

TEANECK, N.J. — The Honorable Lizette Parker, 44, died Sunday with family and friends present at Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck.

Parker was born to Dolores-Ann Philips and Lawrence Phillips on Aug. 31, 1971 at Harlem Hospital in New York City. She moved to Teaneck when she was 3.

She graduated from Teaneck High School and earned a Bachelor of Art degree from Montclair State University and a master’s degree in administrative science from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Parker began her career in public service as a social worker and was a social work administrator for the Bergen County Board of Social Services.

She was a member of the Communications Workers of America.

She was a dedicated public servant who distinguished herself as a conscientious and active community leader in Teaneck.

She was elected in July 2006 to the Teaneck Council. In 2014, she was a first African-American woman elected as mayor of Teaneck. During her inauguration speech, she thanked her daughter, Alyssa, “who does not realize what is happening this evening, she will grow up and know she can be anything she wants even Teaneck mayor and things beyond.”

As mayor, the obituary said, she “upheld the guiding values, ethics, and principles of the social work profession: Advocacy, human rights, and social and economic justice.”

Parker “adamantly advocated and demonstrated a high level of commitment by addressing issues pertinent to family, youth, and children in her community, such as: Poverty, housing, health care, cultural awareness/diversity, quality of life, job training, education, violence, LGBTQ, and youth development.”

Parker’s proudest accomplishment on the council was the creation of the Youth Advisory Board that services “the town’s most precious residents.”

Parker also had a reputation as an “adept, fearless, and outspoken political activist,” the obituary said.

“Her communal approach in advocacy, community building and organizing, earned Lizette the respect and confidence of her colleagues and constituents,” the obituary said. “Her achievements were countless and during her tenure she received the following awards/honors to name a few: Girl Scouts of America; Greater Bergen Community Action Plan; NAACP; National Coalition of 100 Black Women; Teaneck Chamber of Commerce; Teaneck Rotary Club and the Urban League.”

She is survived by her husband, Anthony, daughter, Alysssa, mother Dolores-Ann Phillips, Lawrence, brothers Lawrence Phillips II and Timothy Arline, grandmother Irma Allen, uncles Winston and Patrick Phillips, aunts Eleanor, Florine, and Rita Jackson and Lorraine Nibbs, and several aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and associates from the Virgin Islands to the United States.

She was predeceased by her father, Lawrence Phillips.

The family extended their sincere thanks and heartfelt gratitude to “all those that went above and beyond to support Lizette.”

“Your acts of kindness have been noted here on earth and in heaven,” the family said.

Visitation will be Friday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at Mount Olive Baptist Church at 260 Central Ave. in Hackensack. A funeral service will be held at the church Saturday at 10 a.m. Internment will be at George Washington Memorial Park, 234 Paramus Road, in Paramus.

In lieu of flowers, Parker’s family has requested that donations be sent to: The Alyssa Parker Scholarship Fund c/o Mount Olive Baptist Church.