Myers, Paul Edward

Paul Edward Myers, 86, of Woodburn, Ore., formerly of Olin, died Monday, Oct. 11, 2010, at his home. His remains were cremated and placed at Willamette National Cemetery, Portland, Ore., with military honors, and at Cedar Memorial Park Cemetery, Cedar Rapids. A memorial service was held Oct. 19 at Cornwell Colonial Chapel, Woodburn, Ore., and a private family memorial service will be held Nov. 6 at First Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids, with the Rev. Ted Miller serving.

Paul was born Oct. 17, 1923, in Brighton, Iowa, the only child of John and Metta Merle (Barnes) Myers. Later the family moved to Cedar Rapids. He graduated from a Cedar Rapids school and then served in the Army during World War II as a gunner on a tank in both East Africa and Germany. He received three bronze stars for heroism during that time. After his military service he returned to Cedar Rapids and worked at Link Belt Speeder, where his dad was also employed.

On Oct. 19, 1952, Paul married Esther Rohwedder at Evangelical United Brethren Church (now St. Paul's United Methodist Church) in Olin. They made their home on a farm near Olin, where they raised cattle, hogs and row crops. He was a Masonic Order member in Olin. In the 1970s, he began a night security position on the Cornell College campus in Mount Vernon and worked there for over 20 years. Later they lived in Marion and in October 1995, Paul and Esther moved from Iowa to Oregon. Esther died Jan. 18, 1999. On April 21, 2006, Paul married Diane (Dar) Breuault Adams in Woodburn, Ore.

Paul is survived by his wife, Dar of Woodburn, Ore.; sons, Michael (Mike) Myers and his wife, Coleen, of Williamsburg and Richard “Rick” Myers and his wife, Pam, of Clarence; daughter, Karen Richardson and her husband, William, of Portland, Ore.; three granddaughters, Katie (Gilpatrick) Schmidtke of Appleton, Wis., Kristie (Brentt) Stepanek of Hiawatha and Carrie (Ryan) Laughlin of Des Moines; four great-grandsons, Jackson and Phillip Schmidtke and Reid and James Stepanek; a sister-in-law, Alice Winchip of Cedar Rapids; stepchildren, Martin and Michael Adams of Salem, Ore., Mark and Mitchell Adams of Portland, Ore., and Maria Snell of Hubbard, Ore.; and numerous stepgrandchildren.