The Paul that I knew and loved was the man who always had a smile on his face, a kind word for everyone and a youthful approach to his step.  Paul was a regular visitor to our office when he was on campus and even after he had retired.  Paul was one of those persons that others looked up to and he was frequently asked to provide letters of recommendation, thus the reason for checking with our office before he replied.  He was always keeping an eye out for us.  One of the few faculty members that treated support staff members as an equal.  Many a time, Paul would be out taking his dog for a walk and see lights on in our office.  Later, he'd check to see if everything was alright.  He even went so far as to write a letter to Dr. Bottoms one time, acknowledging the dedication and hard work that our staff performed.

On a personal level, many a times Paul passed our home on his walks with the dog and he always stopped to ask how things were.  If I passed him in the car, I'd stop when possible to chat a little with him.  Otherwise, we always recognized each other with a wave of the hand and a smile.  I remember one evening, after dark, I was in the kitchen doing dishes, daydreaming as I often do, and Paul walked up and lightly tapped on the window.  I probably jumped a foot, but there standing and looking up with his ever present smile was Paul.  We got a good laugh from that one. One of those rare people who always had time for others.  Always a kind word, liked by everyone who ever knew him and never a negative word
about someone else ever crossed his lips.  Those types are few and far between.   If you ever get the chance to know someone like him, you are the blessed one!

The world is a far greater place because of him and his presence will be greatly missed.

With fond memories, Bev Bruce

back