Paul C. Gelissen of Hermiston passed away in Hermiston on July 24, 2020 at the age of 84.
He was born on Oct. 14, 1935 in Urmond, the Netherlands.
Paul was born and raised in Urmond, a little village in the very south of the Netherlands. He went to primary school in Urmond and after that to a technical college in Sittard. After World War II, there was no promising future in the Netherlands for young people. Everything was destroyed, and Paul and his two older brothers, Renier and Hub, decided to emigrate to the United States. The Dutch government stimulated this emigration with a subvention of 100 gulden (about 40 U.S. dollars) each. Paul was very young (about 17) and his grandma didn’t agree with his decision, but Paul had a strong mind. In the U.S., his friends called him “Dutchie” because of his Dutch lineage.
Paul started working in a car shop, then had his own car shop and specialized in refurbishing automatic transmissions. After his retirement, he fully concentrated on his hobby, Angus bulls.
He is survived by a sister and brother-in-law, Tiny and Manfred, who live in Germany; nieces and nephews, Nicole and husband David and daughter Anna-Sofia of Sittard, the Netherlands, and Alexander and wife Karin of Germany; and close friend, Feng Chang “Martini” Zhong of Hermiston.
At his request, no services will be held.
To leave an online condolence for the family, please go to burnsmortuaryhermiston.com.
Burns Mortuary of Hermiston is in care of arrangements.
