Author E.D. Perry – Be Still DEMO

E.D.Perry

Edgar “Ed” DeWitt Perry was born on November 20, 1913 in Forest Grove, Oregon in a home his father built in 1911.

He was God-fearing from his early days and devoted much of his nearly century on Earth to sharing the Word of God. One of Ed’s greatest joys was studying and teaching the Bible. He was grateful for this opportunity. More about this can be found in his “Bible Teacher” recital dated June 2004.

Ed graduated from the University of Oregon. Music was always an important part of his life. In 1936, he joined Bart Woodyard’s big band where he sang, and played the sax and clarinet. Bart and Carolyn Woodyard introduced him to Barbara (Ketchum) Berry, the vocalist with the band. They were harmonious in every way, and Barbara soon became his wife. They had two daughters, Kay and Molly and a very full life. At one point the family moved to Hawaii and opened a candy store in the International Market Place. Ed and Barbara believed, and instilled in their children, that the material things enjoyed on Earth were a gift from God.

Ed and Barbara were married almost 50 years. After their mother’s death, their daughters found a way to re-introduce Ed to Carolyn Woodyard, who had been widowed for 10 years. Ed and Carolyn married when they were both 73 and spent 20 great years together until Carolyn’s passing at 93. The family believed Barbara would have been happy about this, as she and Carolyn were very dear friends for many years.

Ed worked at Boyd Coffee Co., a premier coffee purveyor founded in Portland in 1912, for 25 years. Among other things, he would go on to buy all of the coffee, taste all coffee for restaurant distribution and serve as the company’s secretary-treasurer. Subsequently, he served as financial officer for L. D. Heater Music Co. and Art Lutz & Co. During his later life he worked in accounting and setting up computer systems.

Everlasting life began for Edgar DeWitt Perry when his time on Earth ended in 2010. He was 97.