TIFTON, Ga. — The Perry family from Colquitt County received the Family Legacy Award from the ABAC Alumni Association at the recent Homecoming 2022 awards luncheon at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.
Four generations of the Perry family have attended ABAC. Schley L. Perry Sr. graduated from the Second District A&M School in 1921. He often shared his memory of being part of the student crew that built the amphitheater during his time on the ABAC campus. He studied agriculture and returned home to the family farm after college.
“One of the highlights of Homecoming every year is the opportunity to celebrate outstanding ABAC alumni,” Dr. Deidre Martin, chief advancement officer, said. “From young alumni just beginning their careers to individuals with a lifelong history of excellence, we honored an outstanding group of alumni who are truly making a difference in their professions and their communities.”
The Perry family farm is the longest continuous business in the area, which was formerly Thomas County and now Colquitt County. Pineywoods Hunting Club was created by Schley Perry Sr., and later the name was once again used to rename the farm to Pineywoods Farm.
Pineywoods Farm was awarded the Centennial Family Farm Award in 2020, given to farms in operation for at least 100 years and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Over the years, Pineywoods Farms has been a diversified operation with cattle, cotton, peanuts, tobacco, vegetables, grains, and timber. The commercial cow/calf operation specializes in cows that are bred Limousin, Angus, and Simmental.
Schley L. Perry Sr. is part of a special story in ABAC’s history, according to a release from the college. When working on improvements to the landscaping on the front of the ABAC campus in 2008, a Sodexo employee was digging up a dead tree with a backhoe and discovered a bottle in the dirt. The bottle was recovered and taken to ABAC Public Relations Director Mike Chason.
Inside the Heinz Ketchup bottle were two pieces of tablet paper dated March 1, 1922, and headlined 1922 Sophomore Class. Underneath were the individually handwritten names of 38 students. Perry’s signature was one of those on that list.
The students had apparently dropped the glass bottle into the hole before the tree was planted. The bottle and the story behind it are on display in the Michael D. Chason ABAC History Room in Tift Hall.
Harris Perry, brother to Schley L. Perry Sr., graduated from the Second District A&M School in 1923. While on campus, he worked at the campus dairy, and after graduation, he went on to work at Hunt’s Dairy in Valdosta. His son, Frank Perry, also attended ABAC.
Schley L. Perry Jr. graduated from ABAC in 1959. During his time at ABAC, he became close friends with his roommate, Robert McLendon, and they have continued their friendship for more than 60 years.
After graduating from ABAC, Perry went to the University of Georgia and graduated in 1961 with a degree in agribusiness before returning to the family farm. His professional honors include Colquitt County Farmer of the Year and the Southern Cotton Growers Service Award.
Serving in leadership roles on the Georgia Cotton Commission, Cotton Incorporated, and Georgia Cattleman’s Association, Perry’s ABAC honors include the Master Farmer Award in 1966 and the J. Lamar Branch for Leadership in Agriculture Award in 2010. He is a member of the ABAC President’s Club and supports the ABAC Beef Unit, An Evening for ABAC, and the Pineywoods Farms Annual Scholarship at ABAC.
Schley L. Perry III and Jonathan Perry, the sons of Schley L. Perry Jr., also attended ABAC in the 1980s. Schley L. Perry III graduated from the University of Georgia in 1989 and is the principal and director of Cornerstone Government Affairs in Washington, DC.
Jonathan Perry is the general manager of Deer Valley Farm in Fayetteville, Tenn., and the owner of the Hickory House restaurant in Pulaski, Tenn. Deer Valley Farms donates the use of a bull to the ABAC Beef Unit each year and also welcomes ABAC students to the farm and the restaurant each year on the Cattle Industry Tour.
The fourth generation of the Perry Family to attend ABAC includes William J. “Bill” Johnson and Elizabeth “Libba” Johnson. Bill is pursuing a degree in agribusiness, and Libba is pursuing a degree in agricultural communications.
Their father, David S. Johnson, graduated from ABAC in the early 1980s. Their mother, Laura Perry Johnson, is associate dean for Extension at the University of Georgia, a strong advocate for agriculture across the state, and a friend of ABAC.
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