In Memory of my beloved friend and classmate Perry. Lincoln High School class of 1966 Tacoma Washington.
Son of John Woolard ad Ola Watkins. Perry was cremated on March 18, 1996, at Tacoma Mausoleum however, I'm not sure if his ashes are entombed at the mausoleum or given to his mother, Ola.
You can google Perry Watkins to read more about his military career.
Perry's mother was a sweet lovely lady, a great cook and dearly love her son. I enjoyed eating at Perry's house and those peanut cookies so delicious!
I had several classes with Perry. We sat next to each other in the speech class. His interpretation of the poem, The Creation was outstanding. In driver's education, he asked the instructor to turn on the car radio, since the teacher refused, Perry started singing. The instructor told Perry to stop singing or he will fail the class. Of course, those who knew Perry knew he was gay.
There are so many wonderful things I would like to say about Perry, but there isn't enough room on this page. So I will say that Perry was a good friend in high school, always happy to help out, fun to be around, and always coming up with different exciting ways to do things such as passing a test and homework. He made things at school exciting and different. Perry was a little different but, that is what made Perry fun to be around. He was caring towards his fellow classmates and didn't like mean people bullying other students. So I am not surprised that Perry was the first openly gay man to challenge the ban against gays in the military and was reinstated. Go Perry Go!
Thank you Pat McArron for sponsoring Perry's memorial.
Obituary
Perry James Henry Watkins was born in Missouri in 1949. His family moved to Tacoma, Washington in 1960. He was instilled with the value of honesty that would lead him to the first successful challenge of the ban on homosexuals in the military.
Perry went to Lincoln High School in Tacoma Washington and graduated in 1966. He was drafted into the Army in 1968 during the Vietnam War.
During his first six months in the Army, Watkins requested a discharge three times each request was denied. Although he never went to Vietnam, he did serve during border skirmishes in Korea, and at bases in Europe and the United States. Perry served as a clerk and a personnel records supervisor throughout a 15-year career in the Army.
In 1995, doctors amputated one of his legs that had become infected with Kaposi's Sarcoma. He spent much of the last two years of his life working with Gary McGill, a friend from childhood, on a movie script about his life entitled "Sovereign Immunity."
Perry, in recent years, has worked for the Social Security Administration in Tacoma, Washington died on March 17, 1996, in Tacoma, Washington from AIDS-related complications.
Internment plans for a small private ceremony for the Watkins family, near his home in Tacoma, Washington.
In Memory of my beloved friend and classmate Perry. Lincoln High School class of 1966 Tacoma Washington.
Son of John Woolard ad Ola Watkins. Perry was cremated on March 18, 1996, at Tacoma Mausoleum however, I'm not sure if his ashes are entombed at the mausoleum or given to his mother, Ola.
You can google Perry Watkins to read more about his military career.
Perry's mother was a sweet lovely lady, a great cook and dearly love her son. I enjoyed eating at Perry's house and those peanut cookies so delicious!
I had several classes with Perry. We sat next to each other in the speech class. His interpretation of the poem, The Creation was outstanding. In driver's education, he asked the instructor to turn on the car radio, since the teacher refused, Perry started singing. The instructor told Perry to stop singing or he will fail the class. Of course, those who knew Perry knew he was gay.
There are so many wonderful things I would like to say about Perry, but there isn't enough room on this page. So I will say that Perry was a good friend in high school, always happy to help out, fun to be around, and always coming up with different exciting ways to do things such as passing a test and homework. He made things at school exciting and different. Perry was a little different but, that is what made Perry fun to be around. He was caring towards his fellow classmates and didn't like mean people bullying other students. So I am not surprised that Perry was the first openly gay man to challenge the ban against gays in the military and was reinstated. Go Perry Go!
Thank you Pat McArron for sponsoring Perry's memorial.
Obituary
Perry James Henry Watkins was born in Missouri in 1949. His family moved to Tacoma, Washington in 1960. He was instilled with the value of honesty that would lead him to the first successful challenge of the ban on homosexuals in the military.
Perry went to Lincoln High School in Tacoma Washington and graduated in 1966. He was drafted into the Army in 1968 during the Vietnam War.
During his first six months in the Army, Watkins requested a discharge three times each request was denied. Although he never went to Vietnam, he did serve during border skirmishes in Korea, and at bases in Europe and the United States. Perry served as a clerk and a personnel records supervisor throughout a 15-year career in the Army.
In 1995, doctors amputated one of his legs that had become infected with Kaposi's Sarcoma. He spent much of the last two years of his life working with Gary McGill, a friend from childhood, on a movie script about his life entitled "Sovereign Immunity."
Perry, in recent years, has worked for the Social Security Administration in Tacoma, Washington died on March 17, 1996, in Tacoma, Washington from AIDS-related complications.
Internment plans for a small private ceremony for the Watkins family, near his home in Tacoma, Washington.
