Elmer Frank Depaul

Obituary Elmer Frank DePaul Elmer Frank DePaul Died Aug. 1, 2011 at Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, surrounded by his wife, children and extended family. It was one day after celebrating his 90th birthday. He was born July 31, 1921 in Seattle to Dominic and Julia DePaul. The family moved to Tacoma when he was an infant, where he grew up in Little Italy with many aunts, uncles and cousins for neighbors. He graduated from Lincoln High School in 1939, served in the U.S. Army during World War II, and came home to work at St. Regis plywood mill in Tacoma. He and Nyla V. Young, the love of his life, were married June 26, 1949 in Tacoma. He worked as a longshoreman in Tacoma for many years, and was a proud member of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, retiring in 1986. After retirement, they moved from Tacoma to Puyallup where they had lived since. He and Nyla enjoyed spending time with their many friends from Sacred Heart and St. John of the Woods Catholic churches and their RV clubs. He enjoyed camping with his family at North Fork and Kalaloch and taking frequent vacations to Reno. He loved to fish, and delighted in helping his children, nieces and nephews learn to bait a hook and reel one in. He had a lifelong love of music and photography, and slide shows were a family tradition. Above all, he loved to be with his family, and nothing made him happier than to share a dinner of spaghetti, perps, salad and bread with his wife, children and extended family. He was intensely proud of his Italian heritage and shared his love of cooking - especially with garlic - with his children. He could strike up a conversation with anyone, and thought any good story deserved a re-telling or 10. He is survived by Nyla, his wife of 62 years; four children, Julie (Robert) Smith, Steve (Debi) DePaul, Alan DePaul, and Jeanne (Charles Wilcoxon) DePaul; four grandchildren, Courtney and Kailey Smith, and Mario and Bayley DePaul; and a sister, Theresa (Joseph) Habgood. He was preceded in death by his brother Lawrence. A rosary will be recited this evening, Aug. 3, at 7 p.m. at Gaffney Funeral Home, 1002 S. Yakima Ave. His Funeral Mass is 11 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 4, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 4520 McKinley Ave. Burial will follow at Calvary Cemetery, 5212 70th St. W. All are in Tacoma. Donations in his memory are strongly suggested to the St. Leo Food Connection, 710 S. 13th St., Tacoma, or the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Tacoma Council. Please leave online condolences at www.gaffneycares.com. Arrangements by Gaffney Funeral Home, 253-572-6003. Published in News Tribune (Tacoma) on August 3, 2011 Read more: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tribnet/obituary.aspx?n=elmer-frank-depaul&pid=152853495&fhid=6435#ixzz1TyUYe52M