Elizabeth Ragland Perkins, born in Richmond on Sept. 6, 1929, died in Irvington on Thursday, July 24, 2025.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Stuart Ragland Sr. and Mary Harding Buckner Ragland; her husband, William A. Perkins Jr.; and by her siblings, Stuart Ragland Jr. and Mary Harding Sadler.
She is survived by her daughters, Elizabeth Parker Coughter and Elizabeth’s husband Jeff, Mary Harding Hodges and Mary’s husband Ryan; and by her son, T. Nelson Parker, III and Nelson’s wife Pamela. She is also survived by her grandchildren, Pierce Coughter and Pierce’s wife Ashley, Eliza Coughter Lillard and Eliza’s husband Chris, Harding Coughter, Cabell Hodges, Will Hodges and Will’s wife Cornelia, Mary Alden Parker, Ned Parker and Ned’s wife Maggie, James Parker, and Lucy Caroline Parker Trapp and her husband Chris. She is also survived by nine great-grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
Liz was raised on Hanover Avenue in Richmond’s near West End. She graduated from St. Catherine’s School in 1947 and from Randolph-Macon Women’s College in 1951. She enjoyed a lengthy career as director of admissions at St. Catherine’s, for which she is fondly remembered by many alumnae.
But what she really enjoyed was her life on the water in and around Deltaville, where she sailed well into her 70s. There, she crewed on numerous racing sailboats and met Bill Perkins, whom she married in 1980. She and Billy took up full-time residence in their own Chesapeake Bay lighthouse in 1986, where they hosted in-style friends and extended family at holiday gatherings and soirees of all sorts including pool parties, cut-throat croquet matches, and slightly less competitive Easter egg hunts.
Along the way, Liz managed to see most of the planet. From Belize to Glacier Bay and from the Eiffel Tower to the Taj Majal, the world was Liz’s oyster and she savored it. Among her favorite foreign travels were those enjoyed with her children and grandchildren.
Liz was a member of the Deltaville Community Association, the Deltaville Maritime Museum, the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, the Fishing Bay Yacht Club, and Christ Church Parish (Episcopal), Christchurch, where she served for many years on the vestry and as a eucharistic minister.
A celebration of Liz’s life is planned for 11 a.m. Aug. 25 at Christ Church Parish in Christchurch. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Liz’s memory to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Deltaville Maritime Museum, or your local PBS station.
