Services Set For Westfield High Grad, 28; Fought Lupus, Gave Back

WESTFIELD, NJ — Services will be held Tuesday for Westfield High School graduate Parker Enix-Ross, 28, who fought lupus since he was 14 and spoke about how he managed his illness.

"I didn’t think I’d spend my college years covered in bandages, Parker explains on the American Academy of Dermatologists Association website. "In eighth grade I was diagnosed with lupus, an autoimmune condition that attacks my healthy body tissues, and it was relatively well-controlled at that point in my life."

Enix-Ross gave back and touched others throughout his battle over the years, according to a story in TapInto. He was a camp counselor at Camp CHAT (Children Have Arthritis Too) for kids with auto-immune illnesses. He also spoke about managing his illness at Lupus Foundation events.

Lupus is an inflammatory disease that occurs when one's body attacks its own organs and tissues.

Enix-Ross' obituary is here.

Family visiting hours are Tuesday night at Bradley Brough & Dangler Funeral Home, 299 Morris Ave. in Summit. Services are Wednesday at 11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church, 1 East Broad St., Westfield. Contributions can be made to the Close the Gap Fund at Union County College, 1033 Springfield Ave., Cranford, NJ 07016 or the Lupus Foundation of America, Tri-State Chapter.

Enix-Ross was hospitalized at the University of Pennsylvania since May, his father told TAPInto. Read more here.

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