PERRY REED MOORE, August 21, 1939 – May 8, 2016

My Father, Perry Reed Moore, received his call home from our heavenly Father this Sunday morning, May 8, 2016. Through months of hospitalization and physical pain my Father relentlessly demonstrated the priorities of his life - his family, friends and Jesus Christ. No matter the obstacle or severe the pain, he held fast to the his principles of life. Even as speaking became a nearly overwhelming strain, two messages could be heard clearly and without equivocation more times than this writer can count: “I Love You” and “Hold onto you faith.”

Perry Moore (76 years of age) born August 21, 1939 in Danville, Kentucky spent all but his childhood side-by-side with his wife of Fifty-Six years, Patricia Ann Moore (Yocum). Parry and Pat met at Danville, Kentucky High School in 1956 and very quickly became boyfriend and girlfriend and within three years, just after both turned twenty, were married in 1959, with their parents’ legally required permission. Both left college and began careers in Kentucky. Pat as a medical technologist and Perry at various odd jobs as he waited out the long 11-month wait until he turned twenty-one and could fulfill his long-time dream of being a police officer.

Perry did become a police officer in Lexington, Kentucky and proudly served for many years until accepting a position as a police officer in Marietta, Georgia. Perry remained proud of his service as a police officer, often spoke of it, and remained in the business of protecting others lives and property until his unavoidable medical retirement in 1992. Perry stopped being paid to be a police officer and applied his skills in the private sector for the last three decades of his working life, but he never stopped being a police officer at heart.

In 1976 Perry and his wife, Pat, and two sons, moved 900 miles from Marietta, Georgia for Perry to create and operate the security program for the J.C. Penney Catalog Corporation as it expanded and built the largest single-story building in Kansas at the time; bringing more than 2000 jobs to Lenexa. The Lenexa Distribution Center, which still stands as the center of Lenexa’s commercial center, spurred the rapid growth of the Lenexa corporate base and the sparked the growth of the small rural town of 10,000 to the progressive City of more than 50,000 residents that it is today.

A committed Christian, Perry and family were active members of the Ridgeview Baptist Church and later Perry, Pat and their family later moved to the Blue Valley Baptist Church more than twenty-five (25) years ago. Perry also served as a reserve police officer for the City of Gardner, Kansas, voluntarily assisted the City of Olathe and Lenexa with many programs to better those cities, and was a candidate for the Olathe City Council in the mid 1980’s. He also served as coach and manager in many youth baseball and soccer programs and was a member of the Johnson County Community Corrections Board for eighteen (18) years, until the time of his passing, serving as Chairman of the Commission for five of those years.

Perry’s support of his church family and the Christian-love that he held for them was apparent to the many who knew him personally and those who happened to have the briefest of contact with him. His Christian faith was strong and he truly cherished personal relationships, felt blessed and a strong desire to share his good fortune at every opportunity. His “good fortune”, God’s blessings, did not come in the form of financial wealth or even good health. His “fortune” was in the many family members he loved and who loved him and all the people he knew, loved and for whom he would have done anything within his power to help.

Perry could be counted on, despite the gravest illness or the severest pain to be the number one fan in attendance at more activities and significant family events than this writer would even venture to guess; from the first T-ball game, countless dance recitals, school performances, birthday parties, to college graduations and weddings, especially those of his grandchildren.

Despite his unwavering faith, even Perry occasionally became briefly discouraged when he could not be front-and-center at family events and at his Church. Yet, even these brief moments of discouragement were typically ended with the sharing from this writer of a few code words: “Everything else is gravy.” These code words were long understood as a reminder of our overwhelming thankfulness for the undeserved blessing our Lord had seen fit to grant Perry – a living, loving family of a wife, two sons, twelve grandchildren, eight great grand children, a daughter-in-law (the daughter he never had) saved from cancer, a grand daughter-in-law, a sister and brother-in-law (a brother in every way a man can be a brother) and countless Christian friends. Our shared view was that with “cups” so overflowing with such unearned and undeserved gifts, every moment of life was all “gravy” no matter the worldly setback or problem.

Any hospital employee who knew Perry or knew of Perry knew there was something special and extraordinary about this man and his life. The medical personnel caring for Perry’s medical needs saw his room, even in the Intensive Care Unit occupied by family members and friends every minute of every day for more than two months; waiting rooms packed with twenty or more family members at a time; family members as young as 11 and as old as 76 sleeping on chairs throughout the night and an endless stream of caring friends.

There was simply something different about this man that caused family, friends, neighbors, and even previous healthcare providers to be drawn to his bedside; to cry at the thought of his passing; and to stand in awe as he pushed himself to consciousness to speak the name of each visitor, to ask of their family and to say: “I love you.”

Perry Moore is survived by his high-school sweetheart and wife of fifty-six years, Patricia Ann Moore; two sons and a daughter-in-law, Weston and Sara Moore, and Matthew Moore; twelve grandchildren, Michael Moore, Amber Moore, Jeffrey Moore, Sara Ann Moore, Eric Moore (Kelsey Moore), Jacob Moore, Morgan Moore, Christian Moore, Noah Moore, Joseph Moore, William Kidney and Skye Kidney; and, eight great grandchildren, Breeze, Patience, Maddux, Kristanna, Bradley, Angelina Lucas and Lydia.