Dennis James Perry was born March 13, 1939 to Francis Connolly Perry and William Byrd Perry in Buffalo, New York. He was the 3rd child, preceded in birth by the late Kathleen Ann Perry Torrico and William “Buzzy” Perry.

Dennis graduated from Buffalo’s Timon high school in 1957. He received his BS degree in History in 1961 at the University of Buffalo and followed with a MBA there while working as a teacher.

As a sophomore in 1958-1959, he met Patricia (Pat) Casey of Cranston Rhode Island, at the time, a physical therapy major. They married in July 1961. Pat was the love of Dennis’ life. His love for his wife is what defined him. He saw her through a life-threatening case of tuberculosis (TB) not long after they met. Patricia had 2/3 lobes of her right lung removed while a student at UB. She recovered fully and both graduated in 1961. They married in 1961 and had their first child, Colleen in 1962, followed by Lynn in 1963, Christopher in 1966 and finally Jennifer in 1968, which was during a scary reactivation of Pat’s TB.

Dennis and Patricia lived a good life as Dennis worked in numerous fields settling in on real estate, contracting and building in New York, Florida and Greensboro, NC. His last employment, a contractor for the United States Postal Service, was a position he worked until he was 70 yo. His goals focused on providing for his family and building his “nest egg”. His success made it easier for Pat to pursue her passion in art, which he was a huge fan of. He set an exemplary example for his children to work hard, pursue their passions and showed support for their interests.

Dennis was very passionate and did not hesitate to speak his mind. He enjoyed team sports, appreciated wildlife, nature and loved living in Boone since 2001. He liked big dogs and owned 3, two of which were in the last 12 years of his life. His sheepadoodle, Odie, misses his buddy, but will be good company for Dennis’ son Christopher. Christopher has provided tremendous “in house” help since 2020. Dennis also enjoyed his grandchildren, including Cullen, Audrey (his favorite) & Quinlan (Colleen and Juris Kelley‘s children) and Casey and Garrett (Lynn and Mark Parker’s children)

Dennis passed on 10/22/2026 at Watauga Medical Center in Boone, NC on his own terms after his severe aortic valve stenosis caused new symptoms and caused his heart to fail. Besides being survived by his 4 children and 6 grandchildren, Dennis has three son-in-law‘s, a surviving sister-in-law, 2 brother-in-laws as well as several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Dennis was a resilient man and lived life to its fullest in ways that were comfortable to him until losing Pat in January 2023. Dad will be deeply missed, and his memory will always be held with love.

A graveside service will be conducted at 1:00pm on Wednesday, October 28th at Mount Lawn Cemetery.

Online condolences may be sent to the Perry family at www.hamptonfuneralnc.com.

Hampton Funeral and Cremation Service is in charge of the arrangements.