Robert E. (Bob, “Bobby-Robert”) Paulson passed away peacefully at home on Friday, April 26, 2013 in the presence of his wife, Mireille, and daughter, Kalli. He was 89.
Born January 15, 1924 in Seattle, Bob was a lifelong Northwesterner. During World War II, Bob fought with the Army on the Philippine front. Returning home to Seattle, Bob worked for several years at Continental Bakery before settling into a fulfilling career in home services. Construction, painting, finish-work, Bob could do it all, and loved it so much he continued working well into his 80s.
A first marriage gave Bob a son, Robert Jr., who predeceased him in 2005, and a daughter, Kalli Gates, who lives in Las Vegas with her son, Robert Martin. Bob met Mireille in 1970 when he and a mutual friend bumped into her and a girlfriend in downtown Seattle, so he always joked that he met his wife on a street corner. They married in 1978, but they’ve been a couple for 42 years.
When the Paulsons moved to Lopez full-time in 1991, Bob commuted for a time back to Seattle to continue his construction commitments. Soon, though, word of mouth gave Bob plenty of work on Lopez. Then Mireille roped him into volunteering, and Bob found his true calling: helping folks.
He delighted in hauling boxes for "his girls" at the Lopez Thrift Shop, and drove the van for the Senior Center, transporting seniors and delivering meals. He even carried dog treats for one of the home-bound seniors' pets. Bob continued in these roles until only a few years ago, when macular degeneration caused his eyesight to fail.
Because he loved people, Bob’s civic ties were enduring. A longtime member of the Lopez Island Lions Club and financial secretary of the Lopez branch of the Lutheran Church in the San Juans, Bob is remembered with deep affection. One parishioner said, "We will miss his warm greetings, sense of humor, and love of cookies."
A warm, funny, caring man with a passion for antique cars and car racing, Bob would want no one to mourn for him. Instead he would say, "Have a glass of red wine, and lots of chocolate."
Remembrances may be made in Bob's name to:
Hospice of the Northwest
819 S. 13th Street
Mount Vernon, WA 98274
www.hospicenw.org or to the Lopez Thrift Shop.
Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Inc. in Anacortes. To share memories of Robert please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com. Details of the memorial service to be announced later.
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