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George Perry, a fifth generation funeral director, who spent his life in the Lynbrook/East Rockaway area and Southampton, died on September 11, 2017.
Born in 1930, Mr. Perry was the only child of John and Elizabeth Perry. He graduated Lynbrook High School in 1947, spent a year at Clark Prep School for boys in New Hampshire, and attended Syracuse University where he played lacrosse and basketball. Later he studied animal husbandry at the University of New Hampshire.
He grew up in the family funeral home in Lynbrook and later often joked that he had not gone far in life, as his work desk was essentially in the same space where his crib had once been.
In his 50 years as a funeral director, he comforted scores of individuals, known for saying the right thing and when to say it. Survivors said that his profession gave him a first-hand view of the sanctity and unpredictability of life, so he lived his to the fullest. They added that he could be silly and corny, yet always empathetic. A peer at his funeral remarked that “this is the first time I’ve been in a room with George that he’s not making me laugh.”
He had “the rare combination of being both a provider and a caregiver,” said his daughter, Carolyn Perry.
A family friend, Mark Hannan, said Mr. Perry was his silent mentor and was the first one to hug him when he lost his own father.
Mr. Perry was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving from 1950 to 1953, during the Korean War.
On July 4, 1956, he met his future bride, Sally, and they wed the following May.
Mr. Perry was proprietor of Perry Funeral Home in Lynbrook, a family business since 1825. In addition, he was active in town and church activities and served various organizations, including Kiwanis Club and Knights of Columbus, and he was a former village trustee and member of the East Rockaway Fire Department.
A former chief of the fire department, he had served it for 50 years; and was fully involved in many aspects of the fire department including coordination of fire safety education, serving as purchasing director and heading the department’s exempt group, which provides financial assistance to firemen and their families. He also became an EMT with the rescue squad and was a member of the New York State disaster drill team, assisting with grief counseling at Ground Zero after 9/11.
Mr. Perry enjoyed getting away to the family home in Southampton, affectionately referred to as “Bunnyland,” which his parents had purchased in 1962.
He once held the record for the largest striped bass caught off the coast of Long Island, a record beaten several years later by his own father.
He never missed the daily crossword puzzle, was an excellent cook, enjoyed a martini, and reveled in family dinners, whether out or at home.
Business associates, co-workers, neighbors, and friends alike remember him as a gentleman, a generous man of integrity, respect and empathy who served his family, community and country.
In addition to his wife of 60 years, Sally, he is survived by three daughters, Patricia Byrne, Laura Perry and husband Robert Sheiman, and Carolyn Perry; five grandchildren, Elizabeth Scordato and husband Nick, Kelsey Byrne, Johnathan, Matthew, and Robert Sheiman; and two great-grandchildren, Leo and Emilia Scordato.
Memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, stjude.org, or the American Heart Association, heart.org.
on Sep 25, 2017