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John Perry was born February 9, 1944 in Toronto, Ontario Canada. The family eventually moved to South Gate, where John attended Victoria Elementary School. John had an outgoing personality, made friends easily, and had a mischievious side! He was good friends with Benny (Ron) Beaver (S'62) and their sixth grade teacher, Miss Campbell, had a good sense of knowing how handle boys as they would mow her lawn and weed her flowerbeds on weekends, and she would pay them $0.25 each. Most of the time, they spent their pay at the Allen Theater on Tweedy in South Gate.
John also attended South Gate Junior and Senior High Schools and made lots of friends and had many "school adventures!" After sometime at the South Gate, John was, as he called it, "socially adjusted," and sent to Huntington Park High School and eventually Bell, where he graduated in 1962. He kept his many friendships going through the years with both the guys and girls and because he had a great memory and his Mom had collected and saved all kinds of junior high and senior high newsletters, yearbooks, and memorabilia, John shared those with our classmates!
John entered the work force in Southern California after graduation and eventually moved to Northern California. In 1965 he joined the Army and at one point in his three years of service, was stationed at the same base as Tod Wakefield (S'62), but neither of them knew it, which was probably a good thing as John said that they would probably have gotten in a lot of trouble!
In 1973 he moved to Northern California and raised olives and oranges and operated a retail store in Corning. Many of our classmates visited him at his business. In 1992, with many of his family passed on or still in Canada, he moved back to Ontario. He went to work for a Credit Union in Hamilton and had a successful career there, where he met a great friend, Charlie Collura.
Although John never married, he had a great love, his pride and joy, a beautiful, shiny red Cadilac! He bought it shortly before he suffered a stroke and then was unable to travel and really enjoy it! He didn't attend many of our reunions, but supported them with his enthusiasm, dollars, and kept in contact with many classmates to encourage them to go. He would also order extra reunion memory books and send them to many of his friends, Ray Martinez (S'62), Ron Romero (S'62), Lane Sterling (S'62), Greg Wethern (S'62), Sharon Rainey Hill (S'62), Norma Lowell Parry (S'62), Jackie Lanier (S'62), and Claressa McClintock Ledford (S'62).
The past few years John has been living in a lovely facility in Hamilton and his dear friend Charlie Collura has watched over him and kept John in contact with our website and classmates even though John didn't own a computer. Below is a letter Charlie wrote to share here on our website.
Hello all.
It is with deep and profound sadness that I announce that John passed away in hospital after a brief illness, on August 21, 2025. My name is Charlie Collura. John was a very dear friend of mine and as many of you already know, I was involved with his care over the last many years.
John absolutely treasured the fellow student high school relationships he maintained with many of you for well over 6o years in some cases. In many respects all those telephone calls, letters and later web site communications, that you shared with him was a lifeline of support and happiness that kept his past alive and which gave him so much joy. It meant so much to him, its difficult for me to find the words.
I am in the process of coordinating a celebration of life for him here in Hamilton. Therefore now that the obituary is available online via the funeral home website I can share the link with you. Please take the opportunity to post a message on the Tribute Wall that has been set up for him on the obit page, https://www.dermodys.com
One last thing. One final request John had for me was to carry his ashes to Corning, California for interment at the gravesite of his parents. I do not have date for this yet but once I do I will post it on this page. In addition if any of you know anyone who is not a member of the Class of 62 website and may have known John please pass this information along to them and if anyone lives in the Corning area and may want to attend the gravesite service pass along my email address below.
Any of you are welcome to communicate with me directly at charliecollura@gmail.com
I'm so sorry for your loss. John was a great guy. I, and I know many of you will miss him dearly.
God bless you all.
Charlie https://www.dermodys.com
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Bonnie Benson (Concialdi)
So very sad to hear of John's passing! He was a great guy and he cared so very much about our classmates, his friends, and the times we shared at South Gate Junior and Senior High Schools and beyond. What an amazing mind he had and memory of all kinds of details about our years in school and interesting things!!!! I will miss his phone calls, even though they lasted what seemed like forever, and I only wish he could have attended some of our later reunions! Because he had moved back to Canada and had health issues from a stroke, he couldn't attend many of our reunions but he supported them with donations and encouraged many classmates to attend! John will be missed by many for sure!!!!
Norma Lowell (Parry)
It was so wonderful to get back in touch with John and a few other classmates on this web page. John was a hoot back in school and again over the past few years. We would talk forever on the phone. A great way to keep in touch and visit. I will miss you, John. Super Big Hugs and Fun Times wherever you might be. Love to you and your family and your friends. Norma J Lowell
Wendell Jackson
I will miss the phone calls, the dialogue, the humor, the friendship, and I will miss you, John.
Jim Fahnestock
I knew John best at Victoria Ave Grade School in South Gate and along with Ron Romero we sure got into alot of trouble which caused my parents to tell me to not hang around with them anymore. There was trouble for sure and I was part of it because of the excitement and thrill of doing something I knew was wrong, but I was no less or no more of what the three of us did and the trouble we got into. My dad was a very strick discipliarian and used a hard hand across my butt which caused me to do what he said to do. I recontected with John many many years ago thru letters for a time then by phone and he was diffenately a talker but it was good to hear from someone from my long ago past in Victoria Ave School. I of course was saddened to hear of his passing as we all were and must do someday ourselfs, but hope to see him again in heaven. Your old friend, Jim