6/1/2015 update: Forest Hills Connection contributor David Jonas Bardin has uncovered more about Karen Perry’s life and service. See his comments below.
Longtime ANC 3F Commissioner Karen Perry passed away Friday after a long illness.
Reader MaryAnn Miller alerted us to the news yesterday. Perry was intensely private and told very few people she was ill. Only her empty chair at ANC meetings in recent months told the tale. Miller says Perry was buried Sunday in New York.
Perry knew ANC bylaws like the back of her hand. Her institutional knowledge and strong memory proved helpful to the ANC on more than one occasion. Perry also spent countless hours attending DC Council hearings on behalf of our community.
ANC 3F Chair Adam Tope sent this remembrance:
[box]Friends and Neighbors,
We are deeply saddened by the loss of our colleague and friend, Karen Perry. Karen was a dedicated and passionate leader and advocate for her constituents, having served as the ANC commissioner for single member district 3F02 for over 15 years. Karen was also a tireless champion for tenant rights, spending countless hours working to improve tenant rights across the District. She leaves behind a legacy of public service and will be missed by those who had the opportunity to work with her.
We will all miss Karen.[/box]
David Jonas Bardin says
Karen Lee Perry (born: August 25, 1948; died: May 13, 2015) was first elected in 1994 to represent residents of Single-Member District 3F02. She took office in January 1995 — making the ANC commissioner’s formal commitment to the best interests of “the District of Columbia as a whole”, to which she lived up all her life. Karen was a dedicated commissioner and advocate, advisor and mentor. She drew me into the work of DC Water. She was a reliable teacher for all 15 years we knew each other. Karen was buried in Pinelawn, NY at New Montefiore Cemetery next to her mother, June, who had been a lawyer. Her father, Dick, had been a military officer and Karen (born in Brooklyn NY) had grown up at several stations in the USA and Germany. Positive college experience at the University of Maryland led her to settle in DC. She is survived by her mother’s sister (at whose NJ home Karen spent her last Thanksgiving) and three cousins.
David Jonas Bardin says
Karen Lee Perry worked on the professional staff of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) from January 1972 through October 2000. She was employed mostly in NAHB’s Executive Offices, in program and communications capacities, including conventions and meetings.
Andrew J Kline says
I am saddened to learn of Karen’s passing. I dealt with her many times, and always found her to be fair and decent, with an infectious sense of humor. Although, because of our different roles, we necessarily disagreed sometimes, I believe we both appreciated the respect we had for one another. I know I did.
Visits to ANC 3F will not be the same. Karen’s successor will undoubtedly be elected at some point in the future, and I wish them the best. That chair that has been empty the last few months at 3F meetings, however, will remain empty.