Perkins Wilson ’51

Perk died of cancer on Nov. 2, 1995, shortly after a memorable trip he and Mimi took to the eastern Mediterranean.

Not only was he an outstanding business lawyer in Richmond, he was an assistant attorney general for the Commonwealth of Virginia from 1979-82. He was also an authority on ancient and modern languages. He developed a system for simplifying gender for foreign language students and wrote noun gender guides for the Romance, German, Dutch, Latin, classical Greek, Gothic and Sanskrit languages. He was a past president of the Richmond chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America and of the Antiquarian Society of Richmond.

Perk graduated cum laude from Deerfield. At Princeton, he majored in history, was a member of Colonial Club, and roomed with Clark Myers, David Chang, John Mott, Larry Davis, and John Schullinger.

At his memorial service, Perk's children spoke fondly of his old-school sartorial style, his love of words and language, his wit which touched the lives of many, his familial generosity, and his eternal optimism-for him the glass was always half-full.

In addition to Mimi, Perk is survived by his sons Rip '82 and William, daughter Liz, and brother Samuel '46. The class extends condolences to Mimi and her family and honors Perk as an exemplary lawyer and scholar.

The Class of 1951