Jiri V. Parma, 82, intelligence agent

Jiri V. Parma, a longtime area resident and former military intelligence agent, died Sept. 12 in Bedford, Pa. He was 82.

Born Dec. 6, 1922, in Cesky Tesin, in what is now the Czech Republic, he had lived in Bedford since 1992.

He studied at the Benjamin Franklin University in the District, receiving a degree in business administration.

In Czechoslovakia, he fought underground against the invasion of Hitler. After 1945, he studied medicine at the Charles University in Prague. Again, he worked and fought against the slowly growing takeover by communism.

He received word of his pending arrest by Communist factions and had to flee his homeland.

He lived for 14 years in Germany and worked for the American Intelligence School in Oberammergau. For more than three years, he worked as an agent for U.S. intelligence, risking his life while working to circumvent Communist agents and activities in Austria and Switzerland.

In 1963, he was informed that he and his family were again in danger. On May 5, 1963, they flew to McGuire Air Force Base to start their life over in the United States.

He retired in 1992 as director of finance for the Navy at the Washington Navy Yard.

On June 22, 2005, he was decorated with the Commander’s Medal from the Department of Defense for his contribution to the resolution of the Cold War and the fall of totalitarianism.

At the medal presentation ceremony held in Bedford, a representative from the Pentagon said Mr. Parma “performed his duties no less than perfect.”

As a member of the American Sokol, D.C. Chapter, he founded the annual Sokol Tennis Tournament, and shared his lifelong love of Nordic sports through the annual Baca Cup International Invitational Ski Race held annually at Blue Knob in Claysburg, Pa.

He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Ute Parma of Cessna, Pa.; two daughters, Susanne Parma of Bedford and Dasha Fletcher of Indian Head, Md.; a brother, Vladimir Parma of Oxon Hill; a sister, Ludmilla Dobes of Cesky Tesin; and five grandchildren.