Mr. and Mrs. R.C. Perkins lived in Phoenix, Arizona and befriended Tom Cartmell and his roommate, Sam.
Roscoe Conklin Perkins was a civil engineer (Chief Engineer, Maricopa County Highway Commission, Phoenix, Arizona) and was 60 years old in 1943 when he and his wife, Cordelia, hosted Tom. Tom reported that the Perkins had no family of their own, and I don’t know how they originally connected. Their generosity and devotion to service seems to have been a part of their lives.
in 2003, the Arizona Department of Transportation wrote:
R.C. (Cye) Perkins, State Engineer
Cye Perkins earned his “engineering spurs” working on railroads and at mines in Missouri before moving to the Arizona Territory in 1911 where he went to work for the Highway Department (Arizona Republic 18 May 1952, Part VI:2; 5 July 1954:1). He left to work in private companies, but returned in 1926 and worked for the department for the rest of his life, rising to the top position of State Engineer in 1951. He served in the position until his death in 1954. One of his earliest major projects was serving as chief engineer for construction of Maricopa County’s first paved road system, which involved a network of 327 miles of concrete highways. Another major assignment was building Gillespie dam and bridge. One of his most challenging jobs was building Navajo Bridge at Marble Canyon, 467 feet above the Colorado River. He also was in charge of construction of U.S. Highway 60 between Globe and Springerville, through the Salt River Canyon, and also helped plan and build improvements of the highway through rugged terrain west of Globe to Superior.
R.C. died in 1954 and is buried in Phoenix.
Cordelia was a well-known art instructor in Phoenix, for whom the Cordelia Perkins Memorial Award was created. According to the Arizona Republic (1964)
The Phoenix Pen Women’s Cordelia Perkins Memorial Award was established by the Phoenix Pen Women and Interested members of the community, the Award honors the memory of Cordelia Perkins, much beloved art teacher, originator of the Masque of the Yellow Moon and a Pen Woman. It is given each year to an outstanding girl art student in the Phoenix high school system.
Cordelia died in 1956 and is buried in Phoenix.