The Lasting Legacy of Dr. Michael And Kim Perry

Dr. Michael and Kim Perry, both from Brandon, started their journey together as childhood sweethearts. This couple was compassionate about helping others, for offering pro bono dental care to those in need to funding scholarships for youth sports, consistently showing selflessness and a willingness to give throughout our Oxford community. They are survived by their three children Sarah McConnell (13), John West (12), and Anna Reed (7), and parents Patricia Sue Perry and Debbie Westerfield. (Photo Facebook)

Two months ago on August 14, the Oxford community was shaken by a plane crash that killed six people. Among those lost in the crash were Dr. Michael Perry and his wife Kim. With an outpouring of support from the community, friends and family, the Perrys leave behind a legacy that will withstand the test of time.

Perry owned a dental practice with five different locations across the state of Mississippi and the Memphis area. After the initial shock of the tragic accident, local dentist and close friend, Dr. Walker Swaney, felt that it was his responsibility to ensure that Perry’s practice remain operational and thriving.

“I knew we had to keep his practice running at the same level of high integrity and high expertise,” Swaney said.

Working alongside Perry’s brother Robert, and mother Patsy, Swaney was able to get in touch with classmates of Perrys from the Department of Graduate Periodontics at the Baylor School of Dentistry, many of whom immediately offered to help in any way they could. Coming from areas all over the country, nine different dentists have been rotating, staying in Oxford to see patients. Dr. Brenda Fowler, Perry’s business partner wasn’t surprised at all to see people willing to offer a helping hand.

“He would’ve done the same for us. He’s one of those people that you can’t help but like. He was always unselfish and treated everyone with respect no matter what,” Fowler said.

With an impeccable work ethic and tireless effort to make his practice the best it could be, filling in for Perry is no easy task, according to Dr. Swaney.

“He would do what three people could do in one day. The people that came in took one look at his schedule and said, ‘I have to do all this in a day?,” Swaney said. “Dr. Perry was a working machine, he was always going 100 mph, but he always did unbelievably great work,” Swaney said. 

While this was being planned out, Dr. Swaney was able to get in touch with Karen Wilson, the deputy director of Dental Examiners for the state of Mississippi. Wilson was able to give insight to Board Regulation 57 allowing dentists from other states to practice without a Mississippi license. Another regulation will allow the sale of a practice to a person without a Mississippi license, which will be used for Dr. Fowler, who is licensed in Tennessee, to be able to purchase the practice.

Perry and his wife leave behind much more than his practice. They were the parents of three children, Sarah, John West and Anna Reed. The three kids will be adopted by Perry’s brother, Robert, who also has four children of his own.

“We talked about each other taking care of each other’s family if something were ever to happen, and I’m getting to do that now for my nieces and nephews,” Robert said. “Ashley and I had no doubt that we would be moving our four kids to Oxford and raising all seven together, as Michael and Kim would have done the same thing for us. We have four schools covered in Oxford, and the faculty and staff have been very accommodating in getting our kids enrolled as quickly as possible.”

Upon hearing the news after the accident, Robert knew that he lost not only his brother but so much more, and it’s only natural to think of what could have been.

“I lost my best friend, my mentor, and my hero,” Robert said. “We talked about putting the work in early in life so we could ride out into the sunset later. Unfortunately, he didn’t get to do that, but deep down, I know he would not ever let up in pursuing his passion to provide for his family.”

Both Perry and Kim were able to help people each and every day. Kim was a nurse practitioner, and Perry a dentist. Robert can see how many people his brother and sister-in-law really touched through the tremendous support he has received while coping with the tremendous loss he has suffered.

“Michael loved his staff who have been with him while he has built an amazing practice. Kim was a nurse practitioner who helped so many students at Ole Miss while away from their mothers during an important time in their lives,” Robert said. “We have gotten numerous letters about how Michael performed surgeries free of charge, about how he would call his patients to check on them at night after a surgery had been performed.  Parents have written to us to tell stories about their daughters who were nurtured by Kim at the Ole Miss Student Health Center.”

Everything that Perry and his wife did was in the best interest of their kids and the community. In 2013, they put much of their time, money and effort into creating the Oxford-Lafayette Sportsplex, a 73-acre complex that serves numerous communities in North Mississippi with over 800 children competing in baseball, softball and soccer: a place where Perry and Kim enjoyed watching their own children play numerous sports.

“Without looking for notoriety, he sought out to make a difference by creating this complex to give kids an accessible place to play. People need to know how committed he was to the kids and their health, wellbeing and making sure they had a place to have fun and compete. So, if there’s anything that will be a hallmark to his name that’s it,” Swaney said.

While there are many different things that people will remember about the Perrys, one of the main things is their ability to perk up those who were around them.

“He was a one-of-a-kind guy. When he walked into the room, the whole room shined,” Swaney said.

Robert said, “Both Michael and Kim had infectious smiles that all who know them will remember. Michael’s was always a grin that made most people think he was up to something, and most of the time he was.”

Steven Gagliano is a writer for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com.

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