Obituary of Paul C. Lawrie

After a 2 year battle with lung cancer, Paul Chapman Lawrie passed away in his Lodi home on August 15, 2013, at the age of 71. Paul was born on May 19, 1942 in Bangor, Maine to Evans &Gladys Lawrie. He is survived by his wife Holly (Harlene), sons Mitchell Lawrie (Barbara) of Scottsdale AZ, Doug Lawrie of Lodi CA, Curtis Lawrie of Paradise CA, brothers R. Michael Lawrie (Liz) of Stockton, Stan Lawrie (Pat) of Charlton MA, sister Susan (Rosario) Zaragoza of West Covina CA and 9 grandchildren. Private Committal will be at a later date in Pierce County, WA with Mt. Rainier overlooking the cemetery.A letter from Paul's Sons: Our Dad may have passed-away yesterday, but the mark he made in life is an everlasting guide to all of us fortunate to have known him. He will always be our role model and real life hero. While the reasons are too numerous to recount it boils down to "OurDad's purpose in life was to give". To his wife and our Mom, Holly, he gave his heart and commitment to providing for their family and truly enjoying every single step of their 50 years together. We all know that he will be waiting for Mom with open arms in heaven to welcome her and love her for an eternity in God's Peace. To his children he was the perfect Father. We learned the value of work, the importance of integrity, that family was the foundation of life and how important it is to help those in need before they can ask for it. We often talk about the line he effortlessly walked in raising us. We respected his role as our Father, the one who set the rules and whom we never wanted to disappoint. But he was also our best friend from the time we were small boys until the day he left us. Ourfavorite memories are our adventures in the mountains, family boating on the weekends, playing softball with our mutual friends, drinking a beer in the garage fixing something or working on cars all-the-while sharing fun stories, seeking advice and admitting to the shenanigans of teenage boys. Every minute spent with Dad was the best part of a day. To his grandchildren, he was just FUN. He delighted in rolling around on the ground and sharing anything and everything that they found exciting. He was so proud of every accomplishment and would do anything to help them, watch them, support them and make them laugh. To his neighbors, friends and mere acquaintances, Dad was there to help. For all the kids in the neighborhood he fixed their bikes and toys, for the kids that grew into teens he was the mechanic to help with their cars, for the neighbors who had any kind of challenge he was the person who would anonymously mow their lawns and trim their bushes. It was always tough to tell who our friends liked more, us or Dad.He truly enjoyed all of the visits through the years as you all would stop by just to say hi to him, it didn't matter whether any of us were home. Someday he'll be there to say hi back to you again. To the people that worked with and for my Dad including his sons, Dad was a mentor, coach, manager and example to live up to. His knowledge and expertise were unmatched when it came to running forge and foundry operations. We liked working for my Dad, even when it was the hardest work we may have ever done. From the time our family moved to Lodi in 1974, the people who have worked with and for my Dad at Lodi Iron Works and then Tusco Casting, have expressed their gratitude and appreciation in countless ways. Very few successful bosses are able to accomplish so much with the gratitude of all. To sumit up, he will always be with us because he is a part of everyone he ever touched. We love you Dad!!! Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.LodiFS.com. Donations are preferred to the American Cancer Society by calling (800) 227-2345.