Homer L. Perry

At age 96, Homer Perry had what he said was the "best day of my life" when he visited the offices of William Clay Ford Jr. and Edsel Ford II at Ford Motor Company World Headquarters, on the warm, summer morning of June 9, 2016. In 1966, Homer Perry was the Program Manager for Ford Motor Company's winning team at the world's greatest endurance race, 24 Hours of Le Mans, when Ford won the historic 1-2-3 finish for the Ford GT40. In the days before Ford returned to Le Mans 50 years later, Homer Perry sat down with Bill and Edsel Ford to reminisce about the early days of Ford racing and the impact it had on automotive history. It was a day that would prove to have a greater impact than anyone could have expected. On the 50th anniversary of that win, on June 18, 2016, Ford won the GTE-Pro race at Le Mans as Homer Perry watched from his hospital bed at St. John Providence Park in Novi. Three days later, Homer Perry succumbed to complications from pneumonia and passed away in the early morning hours of June 21, 2016. Homer wasn't famous. He wasn't an historic icon like his old friends Carroll Shelby, Mario Andretti, or A.J. Foyt. But to his family and his inner circle of colleagues and friends from that era, he was a legend. Homer Perry Jr. was born on February 5, 1920 in Sprucepine, North Carolina, the only child of Homer and Effie Perry. Homer's early childhood was spent playing in hills and the farmlands of the Blue Ridge Mountains surrounded by his aunts, uncles, and cousins. When Homer was five years old, his parents moved to Detroit, Michigan, where his father worked at the Ford Rouge Plant, then for the Detroit School System as a mechanic until his retirement in 1968. Homer Jr. met the love of his life, Betty Marsh, in 1939 when he was 19 years old, and the two secretly eloped a few short months later. Their first child, Sharon, was born in 1940, followed by Judith Ann in 1942, and their son Curtis in 1947. Homer joined the Army in 1944 and the family lived in the NorWayne neighborhood, a community originally developed for military families and workers at the Willow Run Bomber Plant. They moved to Allen Park, Michigan, in 1951 and became members of the Allen Park Presbyterian Church where both Homer and Betty served as Sunday School Teachers. Homer started working for Ford Motor Company in 1939 at age 19 in the mechanic apprentice program. Over the years, Homer moved on to become a vehicle test engineer at the Dearborn Proving Grounds, which led to his tenure in Special Vehicles with the Ford racing program. After 46 years of service, Homer retired as the Manager of Emissions Certification in 1985. He and Betty moved to Port St. Lucie, Florida, where they lived together until Betty's death in 2004, and where Homer lived until moving to Novi, Michigan, in May of 2016, to be closer to his family. Homer is survived by his three children, Sharon (Frank) Gendernelick, of Northville, MI, Judith (Marco) Palazzolo, of Milford, MI, and Curtis (Sandy) Perry of Sebastian, FL. He is also survived by his seven grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, and two great-great grandchildren. A funeral is scheduled for 10:00 a.m.at the Allen Park Presbyterian Church on Saturday, July 9, 2016. In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Homer's life may be made to Make-A-Wish Foundation or St. Jude Children's Research Hospital