Paul Leroy Brubaker (1948 – 2019) Paul L. Brubaker’s spirit left this earth Thursday, March 14 early in the morning from his home in Raymore, MO. Paul didn’t want a funeral or service; he didn’t want an obituary. Unfortunately, I couldn’t help myself (and he knew that would be the case).
He was a humble, modest man, both professionally and personally. My friends called him a Renaissance Man. Paul spent most of his life in production management — confectionary specifically — Brubaker’s Chocolates, House of Bauer, Gardner’s Candies, Price Chocolates.
He was a perfectionist and knew that the best candies came from exacting temperatures, precise measurements, and passion. Think Peanut Butter Meltaways, Truffles, Bavarian Mints and smooth, melt-in-your mouth fudge. His employees loved him for his mentoring, honesty, steadiness, trustworthiness, loyalty and expert knowledge.
He could find solutions for various production problems even when working with 70 year old equipment. This was because of his intelligence, conceptual thinking, mechanical ability and creativity. His bright intellect was underused due to his health problems, but his undergraduate degree in Biology at Juniata College, Huntington, PA was awarded alongside his classmates, a Nobel Prize winner and the current CEO of the A.M.A. Born in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, Paul’s childhood was filled with adventures in central Pennsylvania’s forests, mountains and streams.
Despite severe health problems that developed in his childhood, he became an expert fly fisherman and outdoorsman. Paul loved learning, spending considerable time reading — computers, technology, astronomy, history, geology, aviation (including model aircraft), music, etc. — a genuine thirst for knowledge.
He thoroughly enjoyed intellectual discussions and spirited debates (at times political in nature). While slender in stature, Paul had amazing strength and stamina. If he could do it, he would do it — rock climbing, jumping out of a perfectly good airplane, taking a pack trip, floating in a tube in Lake Yellowstone, hiking for miles, motor biking up in the quarries, dirt biking in the mountains, blowing things up, hopping the train, etc.
Oh, and that fishing episode when the bison herd moved in and had him surrounded. Don’t worry, he had his graphite rod to protect him. And of course, this story was told with Paul’s wonderful sense of humor.
Obviously, Paul loved being outdoors and everything associated with it — fly fishing, studying hatches, fly tying, hiking, animal watching (moose, elk, bison, wolves, bears), camping, gardening, bird watching, shooting, photography, model aircraft — his favorite locations were in Colorado, Wyoming and in Pennsylvania’s forests near one of the many clear spring streams. He was preceded in death by his dedicated parents, Clyde and Pauline (Soyster) Brubaker; adored little sister Beth Funk; cherished brother-in-law Robert Boltz and his son, Gary; and courageous nephew Jason Funk. “Is death the last sleep?
No, it is the last and final awakening” —- Walter Scott. We can picture them already gathering in heaven and Paul is fishing with his Daddy, friend George, and favorite German Shepherd, Max. He leaves too many friends to mention.
Thank goodness our wonderful memories will sustain us until we have our glorious reunion. Paul’s friends and family loved him for all the reasons recorded above, plus his unwavering devotion and unconditional love. He was a great man.
Paul cherished his friendships and adored his children and grandchildren. He leaves behind his adoring wife Lynn Ann Simpson Brubaker, Raymore, MO; his fluff babies Bo and Bella Brubaker; son and family Matt, Maggie, Henry and Maya Brubaker, Louisville, Colorado; daughter and family Ann, Mike, Alyssa and Sophia Vargas, Belton, MO; sisters and families Doris Jean Boltz, Berwick, PA; Arlene and Gordon Robinson, Bloomsburg, PA; brother Dean and Grace Brubaker, Hollidaysburg, PA; brother-in-law Glenn Funk, Elizabethtown, PA; sister-in-law Myra Simpson, Roeland Park, KS; nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews: Brecht, Ester, and Amy Lesher, Las Vegas, NV; Nikki, Michael, Jacob, Cooper and Madison Kozma, Bloomsburg, PA; Casey, Natalie, Barnabas, Hollis and Merlin Smith Peniston, Boise, ID; Jacob Peniston, Chicago, IL; Cory and Kristin Robinson, St. Louis, MO; Elaine Brubaker, Baltimore, MD; Brenda, Ed, Krista, and Brian Hill, Glenwood, NJ; Steve Funk and family, Elizabethtown, PA. Paul was a wonderful husband and made all my dreams come true.
I will love him until the end of time. “Death and love are the two wings that bear the good man to heaven” —- Michelangelo. In acccordance with Paul’s wishes, he will be cremated and his ashes will be scattered in Pennsylvania, Colorado and Wyoming.
Donations may be made to K.C. Hospice which made a tremendous difference in these last several months. Special thank you to Anna and Nicole. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Paul Leroy brubaker please visit our Sympathy Store.
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