Marion Ruth Perlow

June 14, 1926 - December 6, 2020

SAN DIEGO — Captain Marion Perlow dedicated her remarkable life to service and family. The Rhode Island native served as a nurse in the U.S. Navy for 30 years. In 1967, she answered her nation’s call, serving aboard the hospital ship USS Repose during the Vietnam War. As a Senior Nurse in the Intensive Care Unit, she played a crucial role in saving the lives of countless Americans.

Once back in the states, Perlow rose through the ranks, adding responsibility and respect in post after post. At the Hospital Corps School, Great Lakes, she served as the Chief, Nursing Education Service, mentoring young men and women as they began their Naval careers. In 1979, Captain Perlow became the first woman to serve as Executive Officer of the Naval

School of Health Sciences in San Diego. Perlow’s superior officer called her one of the most effective and dedicated leaders in the Navy Medical Department. Perlow was also a loving sister, Aunt, and Great Aunt, a family leader who never forgot a birthday and those closest to her, no matter how far away. Please remember Captain Marion Ruth Perlow as an American patriot and trailblazer. Our family will miss her forever.