Kenneth Edward Perkins

Kenneth Edward Perkins, age 83, of Hendersonville passed away Tuesday, August 3, at Pardee Memorial Hospital.

Ken was born in Lewiston, ME, October 14, 1937, to Marion Quinby Perkins and Gerald E. Perkins. He earned his Eagle Scout BSA, graduated from Falmouth High School in 1955, and earned an A.A. in Architectural Engineering Technology at Wentworth Institute, Boston, MA, in 1959. He found work in New Haven, CT, where he became active in the New Haven Ski Club, wrote a ski column for the New Haven Register, and met Lorraine Welter.

The two were married September 10, 1966, and moved across New England before arriving with their children in Elkin, NC, in 1979. Ken quickly became active in that community, including helping lead the Foothills Arts Council.

Upon settling in Hendersonville in 1985, the family became members of First United Methodist Church, where Ken sang in the choir, led youth mission trips, and served on the Building and Mission Teams and as a Trustee.

After a career in housing, Ken became Executive Director of Hendersonville’s nonprofit Housing Assistance Corporation (HAC) in 1997. He continued to serve on the board after retiring. In 2020, HAC dedicated Perkins Place as part of its Oklawaha Village development, named in honor of his advocacy for affordable housing.

Ken also served Hendersonville’s Interfaith Assistance Ministry for over a decade as a Board Member and Chair of its New Facility Subcommittee, among many other roles. An active Kiwanian, he was President of the Hendersonville Kiwanis Club and Lieutenant Governor of the Carolinas District.

Ken loved singing and laughing, making things and making friends, giving free haircuts and giving a hand to those who needed it.

Ken is survived by his wife of 54 years, Lorraine Welter Perkins, son Glenn Perkins and wife Julia Ridley Smith (Greensboro, NC), daughter Julia Perkins and husband Gabriel Mejia (Immokalee, FL); and two grandsons, John Theophilus Perkins and Raymond Tepotchli Mejia Perkins; sisters Patricia Dienst (Hendersonville, NC) and Geraldine Beaudin (Sedona, AZ) and brothers Laurence Perkins and wife Nancy (Readfield, ME) and Ronald Perkins and wife Jan (Lexington, VA). He was predeceased by his parents and brothers-in-law Stanley Dienst and Al Beaudin.

A service is planned for a future date at First United Methodist Church of Hendersonville. Those wishing to make a gift in Ken’s memory are asked to consider Housing Assistance Corporation, Interfaith Assistance Ministry, or First United Methodist Church.