Paul R. Herrett
May 14, 1922 - February 05, 2011
He will be remembered for his big smile and making friends wherever he was.
Paul went to be with the Lord on February 5, 2011 after a long illness. He passed away at home in Everett, WA. He was 88 years old.
Paul was born May 14, 1922 in Mabton, WA to Isaac and Lydia Herrett. He was the youngest of 5 boys. At the age of 9 his mother died in a car accident. In the 5th grade the family moved to Toppenish, WA where he graduated from high school.
After high school he moved to Seattle to work. He worked for a bakery, also as an elevator operator for The Olympic Hotel, then for a construction company who sent him up to Alaska to work on the Alcan Highway. He was the timekeeper. He would travel out to the fields and collect the timecards from the workers and then pay them in cash. He had some great experiences during these times and enjoyed it a lot. While in Alaska he was drafted into the service during WWII. He chose the Navy. They sent him to Detroit first. From there he was sent to Seattle to take bookkeeping classes. On the train here from Detroit he met Mel Strom, a cousin of Doris. Mel invited Paul to Easter dinner with the family where he met Doris. They met 1 more time before he was shipped out from Astoria, Oregon in 1944 on the USS Thetis Bay CVE-90. It was a carrier vessel escort. In a portion of a letter he sent back to his father from the ship on the way home from the war he said “ We traveled thousands of miles, sometimes transporting P 38’s and P 51’s for the Army, more of the time carrier aircraft for the Navy and always in addition we took quantities of men and cargo.”
After the service he came home to marry Doris Johnson on June 22, 1946. There were married for 64 long and happy years. They only saw each other 4 times before they were married. They got to know each other through letters during the war. They first resided in Skyway, Renton, WA. Then moved to Edmonds where they lived for 16 years. They also lived in Woodinville before moving to Everett.
He was an Administrative Manager at the American Can Company for 30 years retiring in 1976. After his retirement he worked at Molbaks Nursery in Woodinville in accounting. He also served in many churches and for the Bothell Sons of Norway. Churches he served in were Esperance Baptist Church, Edmonds, Calvin Presbyterian, Shoreline, Temple Baptist, Everett, First Baptist of Marysville and Lake Country Baptist, Lake Stevens, WA.
He is survived by his wife Doris, brother Donald, children Gail Windsor, Robert (Debbie) Herrett and Pam (Don) Koetter. 8 grandchildren; Mark Lambuth, Shelley Forney, Tina Protsman, James Herrett, Jennifer Wilson, Matthew Herrett, Tara Reyes, Cory Koetter and 8 great grandchildren.
He loved the Lord most of all, then his family and friends. He will be remembered for his big smile and making friends wherever he was.
FUNERAL INFORMATION
Memorial services will be held Sunday, February 20 at 2:00 pm at Lake Country Baptist Church.
He will be interned at Tahoma National Cemetery.
DONATIONS
Remembrances may be sent to Lake Country Baptist Church, the American Cancer Society, Autism Society or the charity of your choice.
Memorial
SEEKING
It's so hard to be humble
When we do our very best
To help the poor & fallen
To find peace & rest
It's so hard to love the man
Who's love is not returned
To guide him to our savior
In hopes that he will learn
To lean on Him for comfort
In every walk of life
To have sweet peace & joy
In these days of strife
It's so hard to be the witness
That you planned on Sunday eve
To tell the world about you
In hopes someone might receive
The blessings of our Lord
Each day of next week
How often we have failed Him
When all we have to do is seek
Now we know dear Lord
It's us who must obey
The wisdom of your teaching
In the bible every day
by Paul Herrett