The young girl who was part of the inspiration for a Bargersville boutique for children and adults with special needs has died.
Hope Parker, 12, died Monday evening.
At 7:14 p.m., crews were dispatched to the home in the 4700 block of Pearcrest Way in White River Township. Hope was found unresponsive inside the home and taken to Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health, where she later died, said Mike Pruitt, spokesman for the Bargersville Community Fire Department.
A cause of death has not been determined. The family is awaiting autopsy results, said Andy Parker, Hope’s father.
The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
“I feel for the family. It’s a big loss,” Sheriff Duane Burgess said. “It was a tragic medical accident and that’s how we’re looking at it.”
The Hope Gallery, named after Parker, opened in 2018 on Main Street in Bargersville. It was the first outreach of the Alex and Ali Foundation, a local nonprofit group that works to empower young people with autism and other developmental disabilities. They focus on getting these young adults involved with job skill development, vocational activities and the community in general.
The boutique features work by area artists, as well as creations by young people on the autism spectrum themselves.
While the foundation that created it is named partially after Alex Parker, Hope’s brother, the gallery itself is a tribute to Hope. She was born with a severe congenital heart defect, and had at least 17 surgeries throughout her life. Hope suffered a stroke during one of those operations and was unable to communicate verbally or through sign language, according to newspaper archives.
One of her primary contributions to the gallery was Hope’s Prayer Box. Visitors would jot down problems or issues that they’re having that require prayer. Hope would then say a prayer for each of them.
