William Ross Perry, beloved husband of Linda Perry and dedicated father to Evan Perry and Sarah Mathieu died on March 4, 2024 at the age of 66. Formerly of Cincinnati, Ohio, Bill was a resident of Dandridge, Tennessee and split his time between there and Naperville, Illinois.
Born and raised in Cincinnati, Bill was a 1976 graduate of Anderson High School. Early on he demonstrated extraordinary leadership, serving as the captain of the wrestling team, president of the National Honor Society while pursuing myriad entrepreneurial endeavors to earn money to finance his college education. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in Nuclear Engineering in 1981, where he was the President of the UC Chapter of the American Nuclear Society. He progressed to hold multiple executive leadership roles in the energy divisions of General Electric, Westinghouse Power Systems and the National Machinery Company. He earned his MBA from Carnegie Melon University (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) while working full time.
An entrepreneur at heart, Bill launched his own company, Mercury Business Development Services Corporation in Naperville in 2002. Dedicated to providing multi-level marketing services to industrial companies, Bill found his passion in helping small to mid-level companies achieve sustainable growth. Both his clients and his loved ones were consistently stunned as his work revealed how creatively, strategically and technically talented Bill was.
Bill dedicated himself tirelessly to community service. Through his church, he assisted special needs children and volunteered regularly to pack meals for Feed My Starving Children, a non-profit group that provides nutritious meals to under-developed communities worldwide. He served on the grants committee of Indian Prairie School Board in Naperville, also raising funds for the district by running half-marathons. Among his most techie community contributions was to launch a robotics program for students at Neuqua Valley High School. In tandem with Vex Robotics, this program enabled students to build their own robots to hone their STEM skills, ultimately entering their creations in robotic tournaments.
Bill was a man of exceptional wit, wisdom, and the written word. In 1986 following the courtship of his beautiful bride to be, Linda Cannillo, he penned the following proposal note:
“Though I may searcheth the garden far and wide
From lowest vine to highest tree
I knowest that I shall never find
A spud as beautiful as thee.”
– from Shakespeare Ode to a Potato.
Linda, I want nothing more of this life, but to have you as my Mrs. Potato Head. Will you marry me?”
In spite of this they were married in 1987. They moved from Pittsburgh, where they met to Naperville where they knew the school systems were exceptional and the sense of community was strong. Bill later bought a house on Douglas Lake in Tennessee to have a placid lake retreat for his family in the Smoky Mountains.
Bill loved to build, repair and create. He served as his own designer, contractor and electrician, forever augmenting and improving his homes in Illinois and Tennessee, passions that he shared with his son Evan.
Bill was a wonderful father, husband, son and brother. He was a true champion of the little guy, always reaching out to lift others who needed an extra hand. He was a curator of eclectic music, a lover of dogs, fine bourbon, cigars, and Elvis.
Bill is survived by his loving wife Linda Perry, children Evan Perry and Sarah Mathieu as well as his siblings, Karen Perry, James Perry, Joyce Perry and Jane Perry, nephews Luke Perry, Spencer Perry, niece Austin Perry and his beautiful mother, Nettie Perry. He is preceded in death by his father Otto Perry.
Family and friends may visit at T.P. White & Sons Funeral Home, 2050 Beechmont Ave., Mt. Washington, on Sunday, March 10th from 2 to 4 pm. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Make a Wish Foundation https://wish.org or Magnificent Mutts Rescue in Hillside, Illinois at https://www.magnificentmutts.org Please do so through “Donate, in Memory of Bill Perry, who loves his dog Shelby” page.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of William Perry, please visit our flower store.
Born and raised in Cincinnati, Bill was a 1976 graduate of Anderson High School. Early on he demonstrated extraordinary leadership, serving as the captain of the wrestling team, president of the National Honor Society while pursuing myriad entrepreneurial endeavors to earn money to finance his college education. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in Nuclear Engineering in 1981, where he was the President of the UC Chapter of the American Nuclear Society. He progressed to hold multiple executive leadership roles in the energy divisions of General Electric, Westinghouse Power Systems and the National Machinery Company. He earned his MBA from Carnegie Melon University (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) while working full time.
An entrepreneur at heart, Bill launched his own company, Mercury Business Development Services Corporation in Naperville in 2002. Dedicated to providing multi-level marketing services to industrial companies, Bill found his passion in helping small to mid-level companies achieve sustainable growth. Both his clients and his loved ones were consistently stunned as his work revealed how creatively, strategically and technically talented Bill was.
Bill dedicated himself tirelessly to community service. Through his church, he assisted special needs children and volunteered regularly to pack meals for Feed My Starving Children, a non-profit group that provides nutritious meals to under-developed communities worldwide. He served on the grants committee of Indian Prairie School Board in Naperville, also raising funds for the district by running half-marathons. Among his most techie community contributions was to launch a robotics program for students at Neuqua Valley High School. In tandem with Vex Robotics, this program enabled students to build their own robots to hone their STEM skills, ultimately entering their creations in robotic tournaments.
Bill was a man of exceptional wit, wisdom, and the written word. In 1986 following the courtship of his beautiful bride to be, Linda Cannillo, he penned the following proposal note:
“Though I may searcheth the garden far and wide
From lowest vine to highest tree
I knowest that I shall never find
A spud as beautiful as thee.”
– from Shakespeare Ode to a Potato.
Linda, I want nothing more of this life, but to have you as my Mrs. Potato Head. Will you marry me?”
In spite of this they were married in 1987. They moved from Pittsburgh, where they met to Naperville where they knew the school systems were exceptional and the sense of community was strong. Bill later bought a house on Douglas Lake in Tennessee to have a placid lake retreat for his family in the Smoky Mountains.
Bill loved to build, repair and create. He served as his own designer, contractor and electrician, forever augmenting and improving his homes in Illinois and Tennessee, passions that he shared with his son Evan.
Bill was a wonderful father, husband, son and brother. He was a true champion of the little guy, always reaching out to lift others who needed an extra hand. He was a curator of eclectic music, a lover of dogs, fine bourbon, cigars, and Elvis.
Bill is survived by his loving wife Linda Perry, children Evan Perry and Sarah Mathieu as well as his siblings, Karen Perry, James Perry, Joyce Perry and Jane Perry, nephews Luke Perry, Spencer Perry, niece Austin Perry and his beautiful mother, Nettie Perry. He is preceded in death by his father Otto Perry.
Family and friends may visit at T.P. White & Sons Funeral Home, 2050 Beechmont Ave., Mt. Washington, on Sunday, March 10th from 2 to 4 pm. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Make a Wish Foundation https://wish.org or Magnificent Mutts Rescue in Hillside, Illinois at https://www.magnificentmutts.org Please do so through “Donate, in Memory of Bill Perry, who loves his dog Shelby” page.
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