|
Perry R. Wilkes, Jr., 82, in his own words, "left this planet" on December 8, 2003. He was born on July 7, 1921, in Louisville, Kentucky to Perry R. Wilkes, Sr., and Florence (Flossy) Mae James Wilkes. Perry R. Wilkes, Jr., was an aviator, an aeronautical engineer, Colonel (Retired) in the USAF Reserve, and a tireless advocate for land and water restoration and management. Perry learned to fly as a teenager, making his first solo flight, in a 40-horsepower Cub airplane, at the age of 15, before he had a driver's license. He was one of the Aviation Pioneers in the OX5 Club, an association of aviators. He also held an aerobatics license. Perry received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the J. B. Speed Engineering School at the University of Louisville and a Masters in Aeronautical Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. In 1955, while on active duty in the Air Force, Wilkes was transferred with his family to Albuquerque. While passing through Tijeras Canyon, he was captivated by the sweeping vistas of the Rio Grande Valley and decided this is where he would make his home. Upon separation from the Air Force in 1958, Perry went to work for Sandia Corporation as a Field Service Representative and later as a Research Engineer, developing and testing earth penetration units and seismic intrusion detectors in the field of terradynamics. In 1973, Perry left Sandia Corp. to devote his life to being a steward of the Middle Rio Grande Valley. His efforts included lobbying against the construction of concrete ditches, demonstrating the use of land contouring to capture and return rainwater to the endangered aquifer, and using holistic range management practices to show how well-managed livestock grazing could improve the land. To demonstrate energy conservation, Perry and his wife Bette added a sunroom to their home with construction help from Bette's son, Leroy. Perry's desire was for younger people to take up the cause of preserving the watershed in the Middle Rio Grande Valley. He was a long-time member of the First Unitarian Universalist Church. Perry was preceded in death by his brothers, Charles O. Parrish and James C. Wilkes, son Stephen L. Wilkes, daughter-in-law Dr. Janette S. Carter, and grandson Eliot Carter Wilkes. He is survived by his loving wife, Bette Deering Wilkes, son Perry R. Wilkes and wife Carolyn Kinsman; daughters Elyse Watson and husband Jimmy, Nancy Wilkes-Trujillo and husband Audon Trujillo Jr., and Joan Bockman and husband Kevin; grandchildren Rachael Watson, Alec Carter Wilkes, Elyse Ana Trujillo, Bogart, Luke and Samuel Bockman; Carolyn's children Cici Kinsman and Jay Kinsman, and wife Ann Holmes; Bette's son, Leroy Deering and wife Mary; Bette's grandchildren Andrea Deering and Glen Deering and wife Rebbecca; and Bette's great grandchildren Ryan, Sean, Catherine and Bernadette. A celebration of his life will be held in January at the First Unitarian Universalist Church on the corner of Carlisle and Comanche. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Rocky Mountain Institute, (rmi.org), The Nature Conservancy, (nature.org), or the charity of your choice.
|
