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Valley leaders mourn death of Perry
By LINDA M. LINONIS
YOUNGSTOWN
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Dr. Earnest Perry
Dr. Earnest Perry of Liberty, a surgeon, community leader and former Youngs-town State University trustee, died Monday. He was remembered by friends and colleagues as a humanitarian with a deep interest in helping his community.
“Dr. Perry was an important part of the YSU family. He will be greatly missed by us all,” said YSU president Dr. Cynthia E. Anderson.
“As a student, alum, trustee and unwavering supporter of the university, Dr. Perry always made the students of YSU his top priority,” she said.
“On behalf of the entire university, I want to express my deepest sympathy to his family.”
A lifelong friend who grew up with Dr. Perry on the South Side, Jimmy Willis is vice president of the Oak Hill Athletic Club, where Dr. Perry was president. “We were like brothers,” the 72-year-old Willis said of his friend, who he said was 74.
“He will be remembered for his kindness,” Willis said. “He was a great man and this is a great loss to the community.”
Willis said Dr. Perry was instrumental in the scholarship program, sponsored by the club and L.E. Black Phillips and Holden Funeral Home.
The Rev. Dr. Steven A. Jackson, pastor of St. Andrewes African Methodist Episcopal Church, said Dr. Perry was a long-time member of the church. “There are no words to describe what St. Andrewes has lost with Dr. Perry’s death,” the Rev. Dr. Jackson said.
“There’s only one Dr. Perry in a generation,” the pastor said. “You can’t replace a Dr. Perry.”
Dr. Jackson described Dr. Perry as a “great guy who loved his family, church and community ... he helped both blacks and whites in the community.”
The Rev. Lewis Macklin, pastor of Holy Trinity Missionary Baptist Church and president of ACTION (Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods), described Dr. Perry as a role model, mentor, ally and his physician.
“He had a gentle and quiet strength,” the Rev. Mr. Macklin said. “He never forgot his humble beginnings and gave back to the community.”
Dr. Perry always had an anecdote or story to share that would enlighten or encourage, Mr. Macklin said.
“He would sometimes call me just to offer words of encouragement,” he recalled.
Mr. Macklin also described Dr. Perry as a local humanitarian who was “vested in the community.”
“He left an indelible impression in the community,” he said.
Willie Oliver, president of the Youngstown Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People from 1988-2008, said Dr. Perry “supported the NAACP in its efforts in the community."
As a life member of the NAACP, Oliver said Dr. Perry was always open to discussing concerns and issues in the community. “He was very much a community leader," Oliver said. “He was very interested and supportive of people and projects in the community.”
Oliver said people sought out Dr. Perry for his take on concerns and issues.
Dr. Perry graduated from South High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in1959 at YSU. He then graduated cum laude from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, and served an internship and residency in surgery at Youngstown Hospital Association (now Forum Health). He was an associate professor of surgery at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine.