- Date Of Birth: May 2, 1934
- Date Of Death: February 9, 2022
- State: Connecticut
A lifelong Educator and Clinical Psychologist – Dr. Marcel I. Perlman passed away peacefully at the Regional Hospice in Danbury on February 9, 2022 surrounded by his family.
He was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1934 and came to the United States in 1939 via Ellis Island with his parents.
Marcel and Renee met through an introduction by a friend and were married in 1957. They remained best friends and co-adventurers throughout their marriage, celebrating their 65th anniversary only weeks before his passing.
Dr. Perlman was the embodiment of the phrase “work hard and play harder.” Throughout his life he pursued many passions and hobbies. He earned a private pilot license before he earned a driver’s license. Aviation was an interest that continued through much of his life, including aerobatic training, logging thousands of hours of flight time. He also became an expert helmsman, taking his family on epic adventures throughout the northeast on their 1928 wooden cabin cruiser that he proudly maintained himself and used electronic instruments that he built himself.
While boats and planes were a passion, his love affair with cars and motor racing started early and never waned. He owned and rebuilt his first car in the woods of Wurtsboro NY at the age of 12. For the balance of his life he owned and restored close to 1000 cars and was always on the lookout for the next project. He started his amateur racing career in the 1950’s and became a member of the Vintage Sports Car Club of America in 1972, participating in their vintage car racing events for decades. His incredible knowledge and skill restoring and racing vintage sports cars was his therapy. Even into his 80’s, with his beloved wife and navigator by his side, they enjoyed competing in automotive rallies. His last rally with Renee was a 1000+ mile event across New England. They also competed in the Great Race, from Maine to Florida in 2014 which they accomplished in a bright orange 1960’s muscle car. With an insatiable thirst for knowledge and learning, he chased his passions with the same care, energy and expertise as his professional work.
Dr. Perlman is survived by his loving wife of 65 years, Renee, his two sons, Bruce and his wife, Pam, Andrew and his wife Beth. He is also survived by his five grandchildren, David, Sarah, Allison, Julie and Russ.
