Obituary of William James Perry IV
William James Perry, IV, 82, of Boulder died peacefully on Feb 19, 2018, surrounded by his family. We sang him on his way. He was born in Staunton, VA on December 20, 1935 to William J Perry, III of Staunton and Virginia Wilbur of Evanston, IL.
Bill's parents loved Bluegrass and Folk music and recorded many live jam sessions with well-known musicians in their home. Bill played the banjo and passed on the tradition of music and singing to his family.
William graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a BS, an MS from University of Michigan and a PhD in Geology from Yale University in 1971.
While at Johns Hopkins, Bill met his wife of 59 years, Diane Alford, at a local church youth group. They were married in 1959 and had three children.
As a structural and petroleum geologist, Bill worked for the US Geological Survey in VA, WV, PA, CO, MT, NV, and ID, and co-authored several books. William is well known among his peers for pioneering work in thin-skinned tectonics. He was a fellow of the Geological Society of America.
Bill is survived by his wife Diane A. Perry of Boulder; children, Virginia "Ginnie" and Vinc Duran of Boulder; William Perry V and Taryn Taylor of Longmont; Joel and Jennifer Perry of Littleton; and eight grandchildren. He is predeceased by his brother Bradley Perry.
A graveside service will be held on Wednesday, February 28th, 2018 at 1:30 PM outdoors at Ryssby Cemetery, 9000 N 63rd St, Longmont, CO 80503.
A memorial service will follow at 4:00 PM at St. Aidan's Episcopal Church, 2425 Colorado Ave, Boulder, CO 80302, with a reception afterward.