Bobbie Anthony-Perez Obituary

Anthony-Perez, Bobbie M. PhD An educator and community activist, died peacefully at home on July 13, 2019. She survived a paralyzing stroke in 2009, which saw her decline gradually over the years. Born November 15, 1923, to Maude Alice Lockett Cotton and Solomon Richard Cotton, Sr. in Macon, Georgia, she grew up in Chicago's Oakland neighborhood. There, she attended local schools, worshiped with her family at Blackwell Memorial AME Zion Church, and attended youth and cultural programs at Abraham Lincoln Center. The center, rare in its time, served a diverse population that crossed racial, socio-economic, ethnic and religious lines. Graduating from Englewood High School as class valedictorian, she went on to excel in the world of academia. She received Bachelors and Masters degrees in Mathematics from DePaul University, a Masters in Psychology from DePaul, and another Masters in Education and Mathematical Research from the University of Illinois. Her PhD from the University of Chicago in Measurement, Evaluation and Statistical Analysis was the basis for many honors including National Science Foundation Fellowships. During her nearly 30-year tenure as a psychology professor at Chicago State University, she helped establish the Black Student Psychological Association. Through the BSPA, she mentored many students. In conjunction with her late husband, Dr. Andrew Perez, an optometrist and Tuskegee Airman, she endowed scholarships for students pursuing careers in aviation and other fields. A life-long advocate of educational and economic opportunities for all, she worked at the grassroots level of neighborhood and community organizations including the Chatham Avalon Park Community Council and the Chatham Business Association. Dr. Anthony-Perez will be remembered not only for her distinguished professional career, her generosity, and her service to the community, but for her keen sense of humor, outgoing personality and upbeat attitude. She loved singing and dancing anything from the jitterbug to the waltz. A fierce competitor, she often entered and won costume, dance and other competitions. A world traveler, she explored new cultures, having twice visited all seven continents. She maintained membership in her childhood Blackwell Memorial Church and became an active member of her Chatham neighborhood church, Ingleside-Whitfield United Methodist, serving as a youth coordinator. Dr. Anthony-Perez was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. Andrew S. Perez; her brother, Solomon Richard Cotton, Jr.; three sisters, Willa Mae Cotton, Carronetta White and Fannie Hunter; and granddaughter, Stephanie Scott. She leaves many wonderful memories to her daughter, Freida Chapman; grandchildren, Karla Scott, Jay Levit (Natalia Zapatero), and Chad Wiesenfeld (Christina Mason); great-grandchildren, Alexander and Aiden Levit; nieces, Lynetta and Edrene White; and goddaughter, Ashley Garrison Hegwood and family. Services will be held at Ingleside-Whitfield (929 E 76th St.) on Saturday, August 10, 2019, (10:00 a.m. visitation, 11:00 a.m. funeral). Interment at St. Mary Cemetery will follow. Contact A.A. Rayner & Sons, 312-967-7812. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be given in Dr. Anthony-Perez's name to: The Tuskegee Airmen Scholarship Fund, Chicago Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen, P.O. Box 19063, Chicago, IL 60619-0063; the Greater Chatham Initiative, P.O. Box 19217, Chicago, IL. 60619.