Dcn. Tim Perry
Lafayette, IN
Deacon Tim Perry received the Sacrament of Holy Orders to the Permanent Diaconate on September 15, 2018, the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. His first vows, however, were made to his wife Deborah Kay on November 30, 1985, in their home town of Ft. Wayne, at St. Patrick Catholic Church. Their union produced 2 wonderful children, Jacqueline Elisabeth Felicity in 1991, and Jared Joseph Isidore in 1994.
Deacon Tim and Deb met while both enrolled at Indiana-Purdue Ft. Wayne, where Deb finished with a BS in Accounting in May 1985, while Deacon Tim transferred to the main campus of Purdue University in West Lafayette, earning a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in December 1984. Upon graduation, Deacon Tim accepted a position in the HVAC industry at Carrier Corporation in Indianapolis, where he worked for 23 years, until accepting a position with the distributor of Carrier products for Indiana, Koch Air LLC, where he worked for 12 years. Deacon Tim’s next and final employment was at St. Alphonsus as the Director of Evangelization for 2 years until retirement in December 2022.
In 2013, Deacon Tim began the 5 year formation process for the Permanent Diaconate, and following Ordination Deacon Tim began his assignment from Bishop Doherty on November 1, 2018, at St. Alphonsus Liguori, Zionsville. Deb became an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion at St. Alphonsus and participated in several bible studies. 3 years to the day on November 1, 2021, the Feast of All Saints, Deb passed away after an overnight complication with surgery. Her Mass of Christian Burial took place at St. Alphonsus, and her cremated remains were interred at the Catholic Cemetery in Ft. Wayne.
Deacon Tim and Deb took part in 3 pilgrimages to Italy, led by Fr. Kevin Haines of SMG. The first trip coincided with the Beatification of Teresa of Calcutta in 2003, the third with her Canonization in 2016. The second trip in 2008 included Jacq and Jared. The couple also went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 2018 following Deacon Tim’s ordination, lead by Frs. Ted and Brian Dudzinski. In 2011 Deacon Tim and Deb travelled to Ireland, and in 2019 they took their children to Spain. In 2022, Deacon Tim and the children took part in Fr. Dennis O’Keeffe’s pilgrimage to Bavaria, which included attending the Passion Play in Oberammergau. Deacon Tim also joined Fr. O’Keeffe on a pilgrimage to Italy earlier this year.
Deacon Tim’s favorite scripture passage is Col 3:17:
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.