Kepler, Paul Preston

Paul Preston Kepler, 87, of Lisbon, died Friday, July 6, 2012, at Hallmark Care and Rehabilitation Center. Funeral services: 10:30 a.m. Monday at the Lisbon United Methodist Church, by the Rev. Tom Mattson. The family will greet friends Sunday from 4 until 7 p.m. at Morgan Funeral Choices, Mount Vernon. His burial will be in Lisbon Cemetery, with military honors.

Surviving Paul are his wife, Jeannette, Lisbon; his children, Steven Kepler, Cedar Rapids, Corrine and Charles Waters, North Liberty, and Kay and Bill Riffey, Cedar Rapids; stepson, Brent and Diane McAfee, Martelle; 21 grandchildren; 21 great-grandchildren; and a sister, Caroline Cramer, Estherville.

Preceding Paul in death were his parents; his first wife, Naomi; a brother, Merle Louis; and stepson, Kevin McAfee.

Paul was born in rural Mount Vernon on Dec. 11, 1924, the second child of Merle and Gladys Kettering Kepler. He graduated from Lisbon High School in 1942. Paul enlisted in the U.S. Navy in December 1942, serving aboard the U.S.S. Columbia CL-56 in the Pacific during World War II. Since 1985, he was a member of the U.S.S. Columbia Reunion Association, where he served a year as president. He and Jeannette hosted a U.S.S. Columbia Reunion in Branson, Mo., in 2005. Paul was a member of the American Legion Cyclops Post 109 of Lisbon for over 60 years. In his early years, he hauled cream to the Lisbon Creamery. He managed the Lisbon Swine Testing Station and his entire life involved farming. Paul was a member of the Lisbon United Methodist Church.

Paul lived in the Lisbon-Mount Vernon area his entire life where he enjoyed two loving marriages and raised three children. Farming, his grandchildren, and his Navy activities were his greatest pleasures.

Memorials in Paul's honor will be given to the Lisbon United Methodist Church, the Eastern Iowa Honor Flights for World War II Veterans and the Lisbon Legion Cyclops Post 109.

Online condolences: www.morganfuneralchoices.com

Published July 7, 2012 in The Gazette