John Milton Perkins Thatcher

JOHN MILTON PERKINS THATCHER - of Greenwich, CT and Edgartown, MA died on November 26, 2006 in Florida while on vacation with his family. Terry, as he was known by all, the beloved husband of the late Marguerite Funston Thatcher, was the devoted father of Peggy, Katherine, John M.P. IV and Christina. In addition to his children, he is survived by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. John M.P. Thatcher Jr. of Hilton Head, SC and Landgrove, VT, two sisters, Patricia Thatcher and Barbara T. and her husband, Alan Donaldson, and three nieces, all of New Canaan, CT, his aunts, Mrs. Richard P. Leach of Saratoga, NY and Mrs. John F. Riddell of Houston, five cousins and his extended Funston family, Gail F. and John Wasson, Grace and Keith Funston, two nieces, two nephews, and Mrs. Gordon Reed of Greenwich. Born in New York City on January 10, 1943, he was raised in Greenwich and Landgrove, VT, graduated from Greenwich Country Day School, Hotchkiss School, Yale University and continued his studies at Universite Aix-Marseille in France and American University in Washington, DC. After a career at IBM and then as a commercial real estate broker, he became a dedicated worker for charitable pursuits, becoming the president of the Greenwich Association for Retarded Citizens, president of the Transportation Association of Greenwich, president of the Mystery Club, a board member of The Whitby School and a substitute Montessori teacher, as well as being an RTM member and being on the vestry at St. Barnabas, where he had just returned from a retreat in St. Bart's. He was a member of The Round Hill Club, The Indian Harbor Yacht Club, The New York Yacht Club, The Edgartown Yacht Club and The Amateur Ski Club at Mad River. Terry was a man who adored and was proud of his family, enjoyed his many friends, loved to travel all over the world with a sense of adventure, and loved intellectual challenge of any sort. Terry was always happy at the wheel of his NY 36, Song 'n Dance, racing Rhodes 19's, playing on the beaches at the Vineyard, or going and listening to the Metropolitan Opera. A memorial service will be held at Christ Church, Greenwich at 254 East Putnam Avenue at 11 AM on Friday, December 8, 2006. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Greenwich Association of Retarded Citizens, St. Barnabas Episcopal Church or The Wildlife Conservation Society. (Terry established the Southern Ct. Chapter, formerly known as the New York Zoological Society.)