Former USC athletic director Dr. Richard Perry, who was at the helm for 20 national team championships during his tenure from 1975 to 1984, died of a stroke and heart attack on Sunday in Riverside. He was 85.Click here for the complete obituary.
"Dick Perry created the 'Trojan Family' concept at USC, bringing a sense of unity and family not only within our athletic department but with the alumni and fans," said Stan Morrison, who was hired by Perry as the USC men's basketball coach and then later served as UC Riverside's athletic director like Perry. "He was a great source of poise and reason for me when I was USC's basketball coach, and he provided me with great wisdom and counsel. I loved him dearly and will really miss him."
Said Barbara Hedges, who worked under Perry as a Trojan associate athletic director after being originally hired in USC's physical education department by Perry: "Dick Perry did an outstanding job as our athletic director and left an impressive legacy of men's and women's national championships. It was a privilege for me to work for him. At that time, we were starting to build our women's athletics program at USC and he was incredibly supportive of our efforts, and that helped result in many national championships."
A memorial service will be held on Oct. 27 at 10 a.m. at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Riverside (4495 Magnolia Ave., Riverside, CA 92501).
In lieu of flowers, Perry's family requests donations be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (6931 Arlington Rd. #200, Bethesda, MD 20814) or to the YMCA of Long Beach in care of "endowment gift in memory of Richard H. Perry" (3605 Long Beach Blvd. #210, Long Beach, CA 90807).
