Persistence must be the watchword for retiree Lolita Perdue, who retired as personnel manager for UI’s Printing Services May 1, after 11 years with the university. Perdue and her dog, Maggie, an 8-year-old German Shepherd mix, have been taking dog training classes so long that Perdue’s friends tease her about their apparent lack of progress. Although Maggie, whom Perdue calls her “Humane Society girl,” earned her United Kennel Club title in obedience training with relative ease, her certification in agility training has proved more of a challenge. Perdue and Maggie are preparing for a dog trial that will be held in November in Peoria, with hopes that Maggie will finally earn her second leg in agility training by passing the open level of competition. Their previous attempts at the open-level certification were thwarted by Maggie’s refusal to stay in the sit position alone in the ring while Perdue left the room for five minutes in accordance with competition regulations.
However, Perdue’s tenacity will likely triumph, as it did in 1998 when Perdue earned her bachelor’s degree from the Board of Governors State University – a degree she had been pursuing for 10 years. Meanwhile, despite friends’ teasing, Perdue and Maggie are putting their extensive experience in dog training to use by working as teaching assistants in a Tuesday morning dog-training class. However, their schedule is far from all work and no play: Maggie also sometimes accompanies Perdue when she visits her mother at the Champaign County Nursing Home. “It’s so sweet,” Perdue said. “Some of the residents just love animals and reach out their hands when they see her. They’re just so happy to see a dog.” Since Perdue retired, she and her husband, Martin, also have done some traveling. They visited Florida in May, Missouri in June and New York City in August and had planned to visit Louisiana in September until Hurricane Isidore forced them to postpone their trip. Perdue described her and her husband’s awe-struck reactions to New York City as “Ma and Pa Kettle visit New York.” During their trip, the Perdues saw several plays, including “The Producers,” “Mama Mia,” “Thoroughly Modern Millie” and “42nd Street.” The Perdues also visited Ellis Island and Ground Zero and toured the NBC studios. They enjoyed their first trip to New York City so much that they have planned a return visit during May 2003. Although Perdue said she had looked forward to retiring, actually experiencing retirement can be a bit different than one anticipates, she said. While Perdue has enjoyed having the freedom to set her own schedule each day, allowing her more leisurely visits with her mother, she and Martin, who had retired several years earlier, had to undergo a “period of adjustment” before settling into their individual post-retirement routines. While Perdue has missed seeing her workplace friends every day, she has been getting acquainted with new people by joining a Bible study group and a homemakers’ unit from UI Extension. During July, Perdue and a friend attended the state homemakers’ summer camp held at the 4-H Memorial Camp at Robert Allerton Park, Monticello, where they engaged in a variety of crafts and activities.
retiree profile
Perdue enjoys dog days, traveling and family visits
By Sharita Forrest, Assistant Editor (217) 244-1072; slforres@illinois.edu
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