Longtime resident and town employee
Edgar F. Perkins, 93, died Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008 at the Apple Valley Nursing Home in Ayer. He was the beloved husband of Ruth V. (Gundersen) Perkins.
A longtime resident of Harvard, he graduated from the Bromfield School in 1933. He began working for the town in 1934 as a school custodian and cemetery superintendent, and also worked at Charles A. Perkins Engineering in Clinton. He retired in 1981.
Edgar enjoyed spending weekends with his family at his camp on Franklin Pierce Lake in Antrim, N.H. His love for the outdoors included gardening and his favorite pastime of searching for, and collecting, glass bottles from old farm sites. His collection numbered in the thousands. He and his wife were active members of the Harvard Sixty-Plus Club and they both enjoyed dancing.
Edgar served honorably in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945 and was stationed in England, France, and Germany, and was at Normandy on D-Day.
Edgar was born in Fitchburg March 3, 1915, the son of the late Charles F. and Emily (Holmes) Perkins. He married Ruth Virginia Gundersen Sept. 30, 1939 in Ayer.
In addition to his wife of 69 years, he is survived by his daughter, Claudia R. Muck of Tulsa, Okla.; his sons, Ralph E Perkins and his wife, Debbie, of Milton, Vt., and Dana H. Perkins and his wife, Debbra Ward, of Lunenburg; eight grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. He was also the brother of the late Charles A. Perkins, Paul D. Perkins, Ethel Kinsman, and Blanche Waterman.
A memorial service was Thursday, Dec. 18, at the Badger Funeral Home in Littleton. For those who wish, in lieu of flowers, contributions in Mr. Perkins’ memory may be made to Loaves & Fishes, P.O. Box 1, Ayer, MA 01432.
