Word can generally open WordPerfect files if the conversion filters are installed during the Word installation (at one time they were not installed by default; I'm not sure if they're installed by default with the current version(s) of Word or not, but it should just be a matter of locating the right checkbox during installation).
But if you like WordPerfect, I encourage you to try one of the newer versions of WordPerfect. WP12 is the current version (WP13 is currently in beta). If cost is an issue, there's a Home Edition which costs quite a bit less (it's missing some features of course), or you might want to look into getting WP11 (still available at places like amazon.com), since WP8 will qualify you for the upgrade price on WP11 but not on WP12. There's also a home version of WP11 (Family Pack 5) which may still be available at amazon - here's a layman's description of exactly what you do and don't get with Family Pack 5:
http://www.wpuniverse.com/vb/showthread.php?threadid=10818
For a comparison of the various "flavors" of WP12:
http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satell...s/Display&pid=1047022958453&cid=1047024934171
Corel has a downloadable free trial version so you can get an idea of what WP12 would be like (and by extension what WP11 would be like, since they are extremely similar).
As for your WP8 problem, my next question would be what operating system are you using and which build/release of WP8 (in WP8, go to Help | About WordPerfect) - 8.0.0.710 is what you're looking for as earlier releases were sometimes quite buggy and may have become unstable. I believe the necessary patches are still available from Corel, so if you have one of the older versions, that doesn't necessarily mean you're out of luck.
There are many people happily using WP8 (and 7, 6, and 5), so if you want to keep WP8 you should be able to do that. I would recommend posting your question in the forums at
http://www.wpuniverse.com - there are lots of helpful WP-experienced folks there.