Page 2 - Annie K Perry - Memorial Obituary

Life Reflections
A nnie K. Perry was born in Boyce, Louisiana on December 5, 1917 to McKinley Ross and Mary Elizabeth

Wright. They were blessed with five children: Annie, Nettie, McKinley, Wilbert and Maudella. Annie was the oldest
of the five children and all of her siblings preceded her in death. Annie lost her mother at the age of 11 y/o and she
spent a lot of her time with the late Rev. & Mrs. Mitchell of Beaumont, Texas and she often referred to them as her
“foster parents.” She was preceded in death by her oldest son Edgar Earl Perry.

Annie was born with an eight inch shortage in her left leg and was often called, “that little cripple girl or handicap.” In
spite of it all she referred to herself as “HANDICAPABLE” and she went on to attend and graduate from regular high
school. She also attended Lincoln Business School and later graduated from Pillison Beauty College in Houston,
Texas.

Annie accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior at an early age and was baptized in Spring Creek by the late Rev.
W.M. McGlary of Glenmora, LA. On January 1, 1952 Annie joined West Side Missionary Baptist Church in St. Lou-
is, Mo. and was a faithful member to the end. Annie had a strong faith in God and she instilled Christian values in all
of her children. She often quoted scriptures in the home and one of her most frequent scriptures was Matthew 5:9 –
“Blessed be the peacemaker: for they shall be called the children of God.”

Annie served on several auxiliary groups and committees at West Side but her favorite place was the nursery and she
received many service awards for her 37 years of service in the Nursery at West Side. One of the things she enjoyed
was baking cakes for nursery birthdays. She also served as the Corresponding Secretary for general missions and for
her district. She also worked as a teacher’s aide for the Head Start program.

In the spring of 1946 Annie was married to Roosevelt Perry of Sicily Island Louisiana and on May 9th they moved to
Saint Louis Missouri to settle and start a family. To this union there were seven children: Edgar Earl (deceased),
Carolyn Ann, Shirley Faye, Linda Joyce, Erroll Stanley and twins Mikel Anthony and Marvin Anthony. Her beloved
husband of 44 years, Deacon Roosevelt Perry went home to be with the Lord in 1990.

Annie was a very dedicated wife and mother and despite her handicap she took exceptional care of her husband and
children. Her children were always clean and well clothed. The never missed a meal or wanted for anything. In fact,
she fed them Sunday dinner every day! She baked their favorite cake every year on their birthdays. She could take
whatever she had available and make a world class meal. On a bad day she served made from scratch fried bread,
stewed tomatoes, fried salt pork, eggs and hot chocolate. During the fall she would make homemade peach, apple and
pear preserves and stewed tomatoes. She would store them in her pantry in “mason jars.” At Christmas time her pan-
try shelves were lined with as many as 8-10 cakes, pies, cookies and other goodies.

Annie K. was big on education and she made sure that her children’s educational needs were met. She purchased en-
cyclopedias at the rate of one per month until she accumulated an entire set and she required her children to read them.
She also required her children to go to the library at least twice per week. Home work was a must in her household.
Every morning she fed her children breakfast and sent them to school prepared to learn.