Ken Perry was named in the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest ever coach driver in 2001 as at 82-years of age, he was still regularly driving coaches as part of his private coach hire business, K Perry and Sons.
The businessman sadly passed away at the end of last month at the age of 92, although he still holds the record for being the oldest ever coach driver in the country.
Mr Perry’s legacy will be kept alive as his son, Bernard, and grandson Richard, will continue to run the coach hire company which he worked so hard to build.
Despite retiring shortly after achieving the Guinness Book of Records title for oldest ever bus driver, Mr Perry was still a very important part of the business. Living in a house next door to the coach depot yard, the businessman had a window especially installed in the side of his home so he could keep an eye on what was going on at the coach company.
Born in the Rhondda, Mr Perry moved with his family to Blackwood as a youngster before going to work at a local colliery at the age of 14. In 1940, what would later become the thriving coach hire business that is K Perry and Sons, Mr Perry and his wife launched a small scale taxi service, firstly delivering milk to local schools. As the business started to take off, Mr Perry invested in more vehicles, and purchased land and garages creating a formal base for the company.
K Perry and Sons now operates regular coach hire services for local schools in the Blackwood area, as well as providing coach hire for private customers. The company boasts 10 coaches, with 12 employees.
The funeral for the highly regarded coach hire boss was held at the end of February. The news was first reported by The South Wales Argus.
