Amy DeLorenzo

Amy Beth Parker DeLorenzo

On Thursday, October 8, 2020 Amy Parker DeLorenzo, 49, departed this world, leaving an unforgettable legacy. Amy was a powerful community organizer and activist for queer liberation, anticapitalism, disability justice, prison abolition, and self-determination for people of all genders. Everyone who encountered Amy can attest to her indomitable, rebellious, empathetic, and generous soul.

Amy was born in Trenton, New Jersey on July 9, 1971 to Stanley Matthews Parker of Roanoke, Virginia and Paula Elizabeth DeLorenzo of Trenton, New Jersey. Amy graduated Magna Cum Laude from The College of William and Mary with a Bachelor of Arts in Women’s Studies and Sociology and earned her first Master of Arts in Women’s Studies at The Ohio State University. Always committed to growing and learning, Amy pursued a PhD ABD in Religious Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Amy received a Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies from Western Oregon University in 2020.

While living in California and attending Claremont Graduate University, Amy had her beloved daughter, Micah Stromsoe DeLorenzo. As commemorated in a tattoo on her arm: “You gave me life,” being Micah’s mom was Amy’s proudest and most cherished accomplishment. As a parent, Amy instilled a love of music, academia, and social justice, which can be seen in the brilliant person Micah is today.

As an Associate Professor in the Interpreting Education Program at Columbus State Community College, Amy had an enormous impact on multiple generations of students, interpreters, and instructors. In 2016, Amy was recognized with CSCC’s Distinguished Teacher Award for her wild creativity, thoughtfulness, and dedication. With 22 years of experience and RID certification, Amy’s passion, phenomenal skill, and commitment to cultural humility made her a beloved interpreter in the Deaf community.

In addition to this work, Amy was the first Graduate Assistant for the Queer Resource Center at Pomona College in 2002. She was employed at Ohio State University in the English Department as an Instructor and Coordinator for the American Sign Language Program, worked in the Outreach department for the Ohio School for the Deaf mentoring educational interpreters, and served as a Professional Development Specialist coordinating interpreter mentoring for Sorenson Communications. Amy worked for a wide variety of organizations as an ASL interpreter, including Deaf World Against Violence Everywhere, Deaf Services Center, Sorenson Communications, Hallenross and Associates, Artistic Sign Language Services, Columbus School for the Girls, and Santa Ana College.

Amy’s influence in fighting for oppressed people was expansive: protesting and overturning a public indecency law that resulted in women having the same right as men to be topless in Columbus, collaborating to create the Central Ohio Abortion Access Fund in the 90s, co-creating the Queer College Coalition in California to link LGBT student groups across multiple colleges and universities, being an active member of the Lesbian Avengers, the Anti Racist Action, and the International Socialist Organization in the 90s, volunteering for the Aids Resource Center and the Sexual Assault Response Network of Central Ohio, providing tutoring services through Community Refugee and Immigration Services, getting the Christopher Columbus statue taken down from Columbus State Community College’s campus while serving as the co-chair of college’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee, and offering time, financial support, and service to organizations such as the Black Queer and Intersectional Collective, Columbus Community Pride, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the American Civil Liberties Union, TransOhio and Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of Deaf Communities.

Amy was an ally and partner to the Deaf community; serving on the board for Deaf World Against Violence Everywhere and providing access to public events such as local progressive demonstrations, productions of the The Vagina Monologues, the Ohio Historical Society’s event Storybook Village, and Black Lives Matter protests. Amy led a life of service to the liberation of all people and created a legacy through her family, friends, colleagues and students for this work to grow exponentially.

Even though Amy’s spirit has left her body, her impact transcends this. In her own words, “If there is any sort of existence after death, count me in the struggle. Once a comrade, always a comrade. . . solidarity never dies.”

Amy is survived by her daughter Micah Stromsoe DeLorenzo, her partner Zosimo Dikitsas, her mother Paula DeLorenzo, her brother Christopher Santiago, her sisters Amber Parker Rankin, Sunnie Parker Barr, Haley Parker, Sally Parker Willmore, her cousin Jen Parker Friedman, additional cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and her chosen family.

In lieu of flowers please donate to one of Amy’s chosen organizations:

DWAVE: Deaf World Against Violence Everywhere - https://www.dwaveohio.org PO Box 1286, Worthington, Ohio 43085 Phone: 614-678-5476

BQIC: Black Queer Intersectional Collective - https://bqic.net

Email: blackqueercolumbus@gmail.com

HEARD: Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of Deaf Communities https://www.facebook.com/pg/HEARDDC/about/?ref=page_internal

Phone: (202) 436-9278 Email: info@behearddc.org