Richard “Dick” Perry, of Naperville, a retired teacher whose career focused on the needs of special education students at Proviso Area for Exceptional Children in Maywood, died Monday, Jan. 8, in Edward Hospital in Naperville. Born in Charleston, Ill., Mr. Perry was a speech pathologist who began his teaching career in Robinson, Ill., where he was named Young Man of The Year in 1963. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from the University of Illinois, where he was a member of Phi Sigma Epsilon. Mr. Perry, an Eagle Scout, was a past president of the Illinois Association of Special Education Administrators and during the mid-1960s was a member of the Wood Dale school board. A member and officer of the Illinois Speech and Hearing Association, Mr. Perry also was named Assistant Coach of the Year in 1990 by the Illinois High School Association. A golfer, scuba diver and instructor, Mr. Perry took up skydiving in his 60s but had a fondness for aquatic sports, said his wife, Sandra. “After retiring he not only continued to work as a consultant for special education groups, but managed Centennial Beach in Naperville for 13 years,” she said. His ideas about pool safety earned him the National Public Facility Pool manager of the Year award in 1991. “He was a tutor and a mentor who took a great interest in wrestling as a coach and guided the wrestling careers of our sons,” his wife said. “He clearly was a family-oriented man.” Mr. Perry is also survived by three daughters, Susan West, Julia Prince and Rebecca Perry; five sons, Richard, Thomas, Jay, Brad and Christopher; 13 grandchildren; a great-grandson; and a sister, Norma White. Visitation will be from 3 to 9 p.m. Thursday in Friedrich-Jones Funeral Home, 44 S. Mill St., Naperville. Services will be at 11 a.m. Friday in Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, 815 S. Washington St., Naperville.
