*Perry G: Changing the World*

Some words from his mom

Please introduce your senior: Perry Goode is our Senior, graduating from La Vernia High School. Perry is artistic, musically gifted, creative, smart, and has the best sense of humor.

What are some of your favorite memories of AJ growing up?

• Perry taught himself to play guitar at the age of 11. He is a gifted musician.
• All of Perry's pictures in his Kindergarten yearbook showed him making a silly face, or his arms were pulled inside his shirt. I told him that I needed a nice picture to hang on the wall when 1st grade picture day came. I told him that he better look like a sweet baby angel in that picture. When I got the proofs back, he had his little hands folded up in front of him, like he was praying, and he had the sweetest smile. I had to laugh. When I asked him what was going on in the picture, he said, You told me to look like a sweet baby angel.
• We had Perry tested to get into a private school at the age of 5. While none of his answers were wrong answers, they were not the expected answers. For example, when asked to name 2 things that swim, he did not answer fish, or people. He said that frogs and turtles swim. Then they asked him to define several words. One of the last words was house. On the spot, Perry made up a song to define it. 'It spins around and around, and it falls on the witch, and you open the door, it's in color.'
  He had recently seen the Wizard of Oz, and I loved his creative, musical, and original response. Perry has an ability to take mundane tasks, such as these weird tests, and make them fun, and put his own spin on it. And he usually cracks us all up in the process.

What are some fun things you did this past summer and year with Perry: We moved to La Vernia in September 2020. It was difficult to make a move like that in the middle of his Senior Year. Especially during a pandemic. Perry has written a lot of songs and has created a lot of art while at home during the pandemic. We have been able to spend a lot of time together over this past year. We have laughed a lot more, because he has been home more. And I will always treasure these moments.

What are some interest you share with AJ: Music and our sense of humor. Perry has always made us laugh.

What are you most proud of?:We are so proud of Perry for so many things. Perry has always thought outside the box. He has a unique way of coming up with creative solutions to any kind of problems he may encounter. We have tried to encourage him to continue to think critically and creatively, and know that it will help him be successful in the future.

What are you looking forward to in Perry's future?: Because Perry, is the baby of the family, we have tried to really treasure all of the moments of him growing up. He has a big brother here in La Vernia, who is married and has a 2 year old son. Perry is an incredibly loving and fun uncle. Perry also has a big sister that is in college right now. Perry is the last one in the nest. I want to hold on a little tighter, for a little longer, as his Mom. I don't know the path that he will choose. But I know that he will do well, and be successful at whatever he chooses. We will always be proud of Perry. I hope he always knows how truly valued, treasured, and lived that he is. And that no matter how grown he is, he is always our baby. Our sweet baby angel.