The Santa Claus That Stayed

The Santa Claus That Stayed Thomas Parrish Some years ago, spealdng at a retirement dinner honoring a Berea College library director, Al Perrin offered a characteristic description of his own relationship to the library. Commenting that Santa Claus traditionally pays very brief visits to houses, entering and leaving by way of the chimney, Perrin described himselfas a different kind ofSanta Claus—one who "came down the chimney and then stayed." Nobody was surprised at the tone and candor ofthe remark. It merely acknowledged what everybody knew—that he was not only a leading donor of money and books to the library but also, as a volunteer bibliographer , spent a great deal oftime at his desk in the special-collections area of the building. The remark was typical of Perrin because it had nothing either boastful or falsely modest about it; it simply represented, with a humorous twist, an objective fact. A native ofMichigan, Perrin graduated from the Medill School ofJournalism at Northwestern in 1929. With time out for U.S. Navy service in World War II, he spent his working life at Procter and Gamble in Cincinnati , where for some years he served as director of publications. A true "book man," as he liked to call it, he spent much ofhis spare time collecting rare editions; his Max Beerbohm collection, in particular, ranked as one of the world's best. On retiring from P & G in 1968, he moved to Berea and began his second career, not simply through his involvement with the library or even as a supporter of various good causes. A true idea man as well as book man, he devised many of the activities to which he and his wife Jean gave financial and personal support. The Appalachian Center Newsletter resulted from his inspiration and for some years received his donations. Beyond that, he was one ofthe original donors to the Berea College Appalachian Center itself, and through the years he continued to make gifts to it. One ofhis most prominent activities was the establishment and support of the W. D. Weatherford Award for outstanding writing about Appalachia, given annually since 1971 by the Appalachian Center and the Hutchins Thomas Parrish, freelance writer and consulting editorforAppalachian Heritage, lives in Berea. Library. The award, Perrin said, should go to the work that "rings true and says it best ..." Sidney Farr of the library staff recalls Perrin's saying that he liked to spend his money in two ways—for people and for books, with people coming first. Essentially, indeed, he picked people he respected and supported them in their activities. "Al Perrin was an ideal donor," says Loyal Jones, the first director of the Appalachian Center. "He gave you money, along with ideas and opinions, but he didn't try to tell you how to spend it." As a donor, Perrin—as anyone who knew him can testify—had other notably appealing characteristics. He had no trace ofthe pious or the dogooderish and never seemed to expect his financial contributions to win him any special consideration; that was the reason he could joke about himself as a Santa Claus. As a person, Perrin was always thoroughly himself , never in ideas or expression or even in clothing changing his ways to fit the trend of the moment. In an often outer-directed world, he acted from a solid inner core of selfhood. And he undoubtedly would have expressed sardonic surprise ifhe had heard you call him anything so fancy as a philanthropist. Easter Sunrise Spring is coming! Ice within the heart of winter melts in the flame of life. The sky turns crystal blue after rainfall and low clouds, a speedway for homecoming birds. We covered you with winter earth but, because He lives, Momma, I know that you live, too. —Donna Lakes 10 ...