Paul Edward Wistrom's Obituary
Paul E. Wistrom, health nut, World War II buff, passionate poker player, marathoner – and a generous, kind man - died Tuesday, May 13, 2014 at the age of 83.
After giving up cigarettes and alcohol, Paul zealously eschewed trans fats and animal products years before it was trendy. Reading and talking about Americans’ poor eating habits were two of his favorite pastimes. Until his final illness befell him, he was extremely proud that he’d never required daily medications. He enjoyed a 30-minute ritual in creating his daily tea; while one might guess it would include fair trade or organic tea, it instead involved the least expensive Lipton tea available: a reflection of Paul’s legendary frugal nature.
A member of the Grammar Gestapo, Paul taught English at Muskegon Community College for 28 years. Known as a “tough” teacher with high expectations, he in later years shared reflectively with his daughter, Cheryl, that he wished he had been “easier” on his students.
Paul made a childhood dream come true by joining the U.S. Navy after graduation from Whitehall High School in 1948; he took tremendous pride in his submarine service during the Korean War. Despite his extreme claustrophobia, Paul confronted his fear through two years on the USS Sea Leopard (SS-483). One duty required keeping watch for 12-hour stretches. Paul was disciplined when he was caught “reading on the job”.
The day of his honorable Navy discharge, Paul traveled to the nearest college and enrolled. He earned a Bachelor’s degree from Temple University in Philadelphia and later a Master’s in English from Hunter College in New York City. There, working in the psych ward of St. Vincent’s Hospital, he met Frances Berns, his former wife and mother of their children. After marrying, they relocated to Whitehall, Michigan.
Paul spoke of his three surviving children, who lived out some of his own dreams, with pride. His son, Kevin, became an attorney, something Paul once wished he had done. The last few years he repeatedly expressed envy to Kevin regarding “how interesting” his job must be, and loved hearing Kevin’s drama-filled tales. Cheryl (Bob Brodman), his eldest daughter, became a published author, also something Paul had once aspired to. While he made an effort to read her works, chemistry textbooks weren’t really his genre. Paul’s youngest daughter, Shawn (Jerry Case), completed the Ironman Triathlon. Paul inspired her when they ran their first marathon together in 1981. She still can’t believe he talked her into running an 18-mile training run around the Whitehall High School track, counting their 72 laps by moving sticks from 1 bucket to another.
His children also humorously remember Paul’s safety compulsions. He once gave Cheryl a rope ladder for Christmas, as the dorm she lived in was “a firetrap”. He drew a line behind which his family were required to sit while watching TV - so that radiation wouldn’t ruin their eyesight. And he convinced Santa to put dental floss in their stockings each Christmas.
A serious man who didn’t easily laugh at himself, he also didn’t laugh at others. If you asked Paul for help, he gave promptly and generously. He believed in fairness and justice. He regretted not making the trip to DC in 1963 to walk in the Civil Rights March. While it was natural for his generation to think it silly for women to be in politics, he later reversed his thinking entirely, saying not only should women lead countries, but that they’d undoubtedly be much better at it than the ego-driven men usually at the helm.
Paul excelled at Texas Hold‘em poker and packing things perfectly. His family will remember him as the “world’s best packaging engineer”. He loved running and walking, visiting libraries, national parks, and public college campuses; reading nonfiction; listening to bluegrass and folk music; and watching the Detroit Tigers on TV. He despised con artists, loud noises, bad grammar, social events, and fixing things. Paul’s motto was “If it’s broke, don’t fix it.”
In his 70s, Paul became a Hospice volunteer. But it didn’t last long, as instead of taking home a volunteer service award, he took home a much better “prize” – the volunteer coordinator. The years that followed were some of his happiest and most laughter-filled. His loving and endlessly patient wife, Christine, survives him, along with her chaotic but entertaining menagerie of farm creatures. Feeding Eeyore the donkey, endlessly braying at him across the yard, was one fun chore that gave Paul purpose his last few years. Another was continuously throwing the slimy, slobbery tennis ball for their neurotic but loveable dog, Meme.
Paul was born and raised in Chicago (except for delightful summers in Whitehall) in 1930 by Felix E. Wistrom and Blenda (Moovie) Wistrom; they, and his sister, Felicia (Femenias), preceded him in death. In addition to the aforementioned, he is also survived by his beloved nieces, Blenda Femenias and Ramona Femenias (who said, “I miss him terribly already; he was the closest I had to a father”); grandchildren Kadie (Nick) Decker, Kory (Ryan) Pierce, and Nyssa Lynn Wistrom Brodman; and 3 great-grandchildren (as well as 2 more on the way).
Paul was a private man, and his desire for there to be no funeral will be honored. Visitation will be held at VanZantwick Bartels and Kammeraad Funeral Home, 620 Washington Avenue, Grand Haven, MI on Saturday, May 17, 2014 from 10 a.m. - 12:00 noon. Share memories with the family at their online guest book at www.vbkfuneralhome.com.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you honor Paul’s memory by making a donation of either money or time to your local Hospice organization or animal shelter.
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