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Dave Perry is a
34 year old high school teacher and football coach at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville Illinois. He and his wife Allison have two children, a
6 year old daughter and 2 year old son. Dave holds a masters in education, and is Chairman of the
Physical Education, Health, and Driver Education Departments at Neuqua
Valley High. He’s also Head Freshman Football Coach, after stepping
down as the Varsity Defensive Coordinator for 8 years so he could spend more time with his family.
Wife Allison also teaches
freshman Physical Education at Neuqua Valley High, and is currently pursuing her masters degree.
I met Dave, it must have been five or six years ago, on eBay when I happen to read his “AboutMe”. In it he mentioned his
involvement with Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Being a
believer myself I emailed him to say hi, and our friendship
began. During
my pre 08' National wanderings I went to the Sandwich Antiques
market in Sandwich Illinois, and stayed there overnight. Dave
only lives about twenty minutes from there. He came and picked
me up and took me to see his collection, then graciously treated
me to dinner at his favorite restaurant Wildfire in Oak Brook.
His collection is
almost all football and I was taken back at how good it was. He
had sent photos of things over the years, but they didn't do
justice. The things he sent photos of looked a lot better in
person. I came back the next night and shot the whole collection.
One of the most impressive aspects of his collection is he built
it completely on the hobby's dime, buying selling and upgrading.
Dave has built a nice collection and enjoyed the hobby without
compromising his family's finances. Reflecting on his wonderful
family, career, and great collection, God has obviously blessed
him. Below are Dave's own words about his collecting which he
recently emailed me:
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Quote
from Dave Perry
"I've been collecting vintage football items for about 13 years. I started by just wanting 1 leather football helmet. Loving the game of football so much as a player and coach, I was intrigued with the roots of the game. I searched every antique shop I came to with no luck for over a year. My parents found 2 old 1940's leather helmets at an antique shop in Wisconsin and bought them for me for Christmas 13 years ago and that was the start of my obsession. I enjoy having a nice assortment of items that span the decades the game has been played. I often wish I could go back and talk to the men who used to
wear this gear to get their perspective." |
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