Dock of the Bay - November 2004

I met Perry on a flight to Orlando in April of 2004. He was traveling on to the Bahamas for an annual birthday/fishing trip to meet a group of his friends for a week of sun and fun.

We met several times during the next year and I easily fell in love with him. He was a perfect gentlemen, fun to be with and full of charm. He had a great sense of humor and loved travel, music, the arts, golfing and keeping in shape.

He was dedicated to his career and also donated his time to numerous causes. During our time together, he shared much of his life story and listened with great interest to mine. He made me feel that I was the only person in the room and had a great capacity for love.

I think about him every day and am thankful that while we did not ultimately get to make a life together, I got to meet and spend time with this wonderful man, a man who touched my life and the life of so many others.

Please feel free to share your memories of Perry here. I know he was loved by many and that he will be remembered in your hearts as he is in mine.

Athletics and Physical Fitness

Perry was on the rowing team in high school and college and used to row several miles a day for about 8 years. Then he would run up and down steps. He also likes to bike, climb mountains and camp. He said he could climb any mountain.

He loved to play golf and tried to find time every week to spend on the golf course. He exercised every day and had a best friend that he worked out with regularly. I don't know his name, but would love for him to contact me.

He was in great physical condition, took care of himself and had no body fat at all. He was truly a beautiful person, inside and out.

Krewe of Tucks

Perry was a member of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Krewe of Tucks. He served as King Tucks XXXV in 2003 and as Float Captain for two floats in 2005, which was the last Mardi Gras he got to see.

He had 60 friends from school come in town to help him in decorating the floats that January and had a great time showing them around New Orleans.

He sent me this picture of him riding on a float as King Tucks in 2003 and tossing throws to revellers.

He died on June 14, 2005, three and a half months before Hurricane Katrina ripped apart the city that he loved so much, along with much of the Gulf Coast.

New Orleans Jazz Fest

Perry loved the New Orleans Jazz Fest and attended every year. His apartment had a display of posters from the Jazz Festival going back several years. Pictured is a poster from 2004, the 35th Anniversary of the festival, featuring Harry Connick, Jr., which is the last festival that he attended.

Here's a link to the lineup that year

Listed among the hundreds of incredible, soulful and spirited acts performing that year were the Dave Brubeck Quartet, Branford Marsalis, Etta James, B. B. King, Bonnie Raitt, Emmy Lou Harris, Irma Thomas, Macy Gray, Dr. John, Ray Charles, Cowboy Mouth, Allan Toussaint, The Steve Miller Band, Lenny Kravitz, The Neville Brothers and, of course, Harry Connick, Jr.

We often listened to Sting when we were together and enjoyed Rod Stewart's jazz cds. The last artist he talked with me about was Jack Johnson. He called to tell me that he was listening to one of his cds and it made him think of me.

Religious Afffiliation

Perry was raised in the Catholic Church. He had a beautiful voice as a child and at age 8 led the music in his church for two years. He told me that he remembered walking to church where he would sing when he was young and how he felt so blessed by God to be able to do that. I asked him if he ever goes to church and he told me he'd been bitter at God and that he really needed to get close to Him again. He was a believer in Jesus Christ and is most certainly with our Heavenly Father in Heaven now.

Obituary on NOLA.com

ST. RAYMOND, PERRY FERRAN

Perry St. Raymond, tax lawyer, activist

Friday, June 17, 2005

From staff reports

Perry Ferran St. Raymond, a civic leader, former Carnival royalty and noted tax lawyer with Everitt, Pratt, Latham & Donovan, LLP, died Tuesday (June 14) of a heart attack at his home. He was 48 and a lifelong resident of New Orleans.

Mr. St. Raymond was a graduate of Jeb Stuart High School, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and Loyola University School of Law. He received a master's degree in law and taxation from the College of William and Mary. He was licensed to practice in Louisiana, the District of Columbia, various tax courts and the U.S. Supreme Court. He had practiced with the accounting firm of Ernest & Whinney and other firms.

Mr. St. Raymond was a member of the board of directors of Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Louisiana for the past 19 years, served as chairman of the Legal Committee for the past 15 years and also served as corporate secretary. He advised many nonprofit corporations including Central City Housing Development Corp., Lazarus House, the Arts Council of New Orleans and the Krewe of Tucks. He was an editor for the Louisiana Civil Practice Forums publication. Mr. St. Raymond was a former float captain of the Krewe of Tucks and reigned as its king in 2003.

Survivors include three brothers, Paul, Philip and Marcus St. Raymond, and a sister, Pamela St. Raymond Dombrowski.

A Mass will be said Saturday at noon at Tharp-Sontheimer-Tharp Funeral Home, 4127 S. Claiborne Ave. Visitation will be today from 6 to 8 p.m. and Saturday at 10 a.m.

Civic Duty

Mr. St. Raymond loved serving and helping the people of New Orleans. He was a member of the Board of Directors of Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Louisiana for 19 years where he served as Chairman of the Legal Committee and also as Corporate Secretary.

He advised many nonprofit corporations including Central City Housing Development Corporation, Lazarus House, the Arts Council of New Orleans and the Krewe of Tucks.

Mr. St. Raymond was a former Float Captain for the Krewe of Tucks in New Orleans and reigned as its King in 2003.

Professional Career

Perry Ferran St. Raymond began his career in 1983 in the tax section of the Big Eight accounting firm, Ernst and Whinney, and attained the level of Tax Manager. During his five years at Ernst and Whinney, he engaged in complex tax compliance and planning for major private and publicly-held corporations. He then worked for several law firms, expanding his practice over time to include a wide spectrum of business, corporate and transactional matters. He had particular expertise representing clients in tax collection and audit disputes before the IRS and the State of Louisiana. He was experienced in business law, real estate transactions and finance, corporate law and all aspects of federal and state taxation. ....

Mr. St. Raymond was recognized by the Louisiana State Bar Association as a Board Certified Tax Attorney in 1992. He has served as an editor for the Louisiana Civil Practice Forums publication and was “AV” rated in the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory, which is the highest rating afforded to attorneys and reflects a reputation among legal peers of excellence and ethics in the practice of law. He was a noted tax lawyer with the law firm of Everitt, Pratt, Latham and Donovan in New Orleans, where he was employed until his death in 2005.

Education

Perry St. Raymond's Education:

• He received a Diploma from J.E.B. Stuart High School in Falls Church, Virginia in 1975
• He attended Virginia Polytech Institute and State University, graduating with a B.S. degree in Marketing Management in 1979.
• Following his graduation, he entered Loyola University Law School and earned a J.D. degree in May of 1982.
• He then obtained an L.L.M. degree in taxation from the College of William and Mary.
• He was licensed to practice law in both Louisiana and the District of Columbia
• He was admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Louisiana, United States Tax Court, and United States Supreme Court.

How we met

I met Perry on a Southwest Airlines flight from New Orleans to Orlando on Friday, April 2, 2004. I first spotted him while waiting to board the plane. He had run into a guy that he knew and they were telling hilarious stories about a friend of theirs. He had on a Hawaiian shirt and khakis and was on his way to an annual guy's fishing trip to the Bahamas.

I was one of the first to board the plane, so I grabbed one of the first seats which was in a row facing the next row and quite comfortable. Soon after I sat down, a woman and her daughter passed who were looking for seats together. I decided to give up my seat and move to a new one, hoping that this gorgeous man I'd seen while waiting to board would sit next to me.

After getting situated in a new seat, I was flipping through an on-flight magazine when I could feel someone's presence by my row. I looked up and to my amazement, there he was. He smiled as he looked down and asked me if anyone was sitting in the aisle seat next to me. I said no and he asked if he could join me and of course I said yes.

We spent the next two hours becoming acquainted. He told me that he was a tax attorney from New Orleans and that he was on his way to meet some friends in the Bahamas, which they did every year for his birthday, which was in the coming week. He told me that he had some regrets and one was that he had never married and was now 49 years old. He loved children and had always wanted to be a father, but had never met the right person.

He continued to entertain and enchant me for the entire flight and I was electrified in his presence. I was flying to Orlando to meet a doctor that I had gone out with once before, but after meeting Perry, he was all I could think about. I called my sister from a restaurant bathroom (where I could have some privacy) to excitedly tell her about the man I'd met on the flight and expressed to her that I hoped we would get to meet again.

Six months later, we had our first date and it was one of the most magical moments of my life. More about that later, but I am thankful that fate stepped in and brought me onto that flight on that day going to that destination and that we got to sit next to each other. It's one of those wonderful things that you wish for, but never expect to happen. This is for you, Perry.

In Loving Memory of Perry St. Raymond

This blog is created in memory of Perry St. Raymond, a wonderful person who touched my life and who I will never forget. He passed away on June 14, 2005. I never got to meet any of his family or friends, so I have created this blog in hopes that some of his friends and family will visit and post some memories about him.

Perry loved people and was loved by all who came into contact with him, so I know that there are alot of people out there whose lives he also touched. Please know that you are welcome here and that hopefully this blog will help to keep his memory alive and enable us to share memories and stories about this wonderful man.