Paul Dean Shell

Paul Dean Shell, age 87, of Burnet, Texas, passed away August 24, 2023, in the Oaks Nursing Center, Burnet. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 9, 2023, at Clements-Wilcox Funeral Home in Burnet.

Paul was born at Mahomet, Texas, on March 17, 1936, to Joe T. and Avis (Burch) Shell. He grew up in less than modest beginnings as a tenant farmer’s child. He occasionally recalled that until the family moved to a house in Burnet about 1950, he slept on screened-in porches, often went to bed hungry, and that it was the first house he lived in with electricity and indoor plumbing. He also would tell you that picking cotton was the hardest work he ever did. In Burnet his dad worked for T. M. Daniels, which meant steady income. This move was a life-changing event for Paul. After Paul and Peggy’s household was established, any visitor to his home would find plenty of food, to which they were always welcome.

After moving to Burnet, Paul attended Burnet High School, where he met his sweetheart, Peggy Gibson. They were married in Burnet on October 8, 1954. Paul’s life could principally be described in two words: work and service. He frequently said for him, work and play were the same thing.

In June 1954, shortly after graduating from Burnet High School, Paul enlisted in the U.S. Air Force; he retired as a Master Sergeant in January, 1975. During his Air Force career, he worked for the National Security Agency as a “Radio Traffic Analyst”. During his service, he only ever said that he “flew a desk” or “pushed a pencil.” In truth, he did high level surveillance and communications analysis concerning the USSR, China and wartime adversaries. He served in both the Korean and Viet Nam wars, and also had deployments to Japan, Alaska, Turkey, Taiwan, and multiple assignments to NSA Headquarters at Fort Meade, Maryland. Years after retiring, he would describe his job as “we kept tabs on the world.” He never divulged anything specific, but infrequently he would let you know he “knew” things. Once, during a TV program about the super high-speed SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, he refuted the top speed claimed on the show. Challenged as to how he would know, he replied, “I know what time it took off, I know what time it got there, and I know how far it flew. I can do the math”. His job required a sworn oath of secrecy, and he kept that oath to his final breath.

Paul returned to Burnet in 1975, where he built his own home, complete with a finished basement and inground pool. He worked for T.M. Daniels, Danlees Enterprises, whom he had worked for as a teenager, and also contracted work independently. He built several homes complete from string-line and batter boards, to a key in the front door. He maintained a Master Electrician license for decades and a journeyman plumber’s license. Proficient at every task required to build a house, he excelled at framing, woodworking, floor covering, and tile-work. Additionally, he was a talented leather craftsman; he “sold many a purse off Peggy’s arm” to supplement family income in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Peggy proudly proclaims that Paul “was a jack of all trades, and master of most of them.” He enjoyed sharing/teaching his knowledge of home improvements with anyone willing to invest “sweat equity.” Working, and adding skills and tools to his “tool” chest, was his hobby and he practiced it regularly, until his early 80’s. During his military career he completed correspondence courses through the University of Maryland. After military retirement, he proudly earned Bachelor of Science (1977) and Master of Science (1979) degrees in counseling from American Technological Institute in Killeen, Texas. He volunteered his counseling services via Burnet social service programs.

During his early family years, Paul served as a Little League coach, PTA President, and Cub Scout leader in Glen Burnie, Maryland. He devoted decades of service to Scouting. In the very early 1970’s, he co-founded B.S.A. Troop 95, in Taipei, Taiwan. He served as Scoutmaster of this troop as it grew to over 400 Scouts. He loved taking scouts camping in the wilderness of Taiwan. Upon returning to Burnet, he served as Scoutmaster for Troop 289 for over a decade. Several of his Troop 289 scouts earned the rank of Eagle Scout, but more than rank, he was happy if any scout at least learned some first aid, cooking, and knot-tying skills because “they could use them the rest of their lives”. He also contributed scores of hours of his time to construction of the Girl Scout Building in Burnet.

Paul was also very active in city government. From 1984-2002, he served on the Planning and Zoning Commission. Between 2002 and 2014, he was elected to six terms on the City Council. In 2016, he was appointed to the Zoning Board of Adjustments, where he served until retiring in 2021. During all those years he also served on many committees for the City of Burnet, as asked or appointed. In 1991, he started serving on the Burnet County Appraisal District Board of Directors and served there for many years. He also spent several years in the Burnet County Heritage Society. He worked untold hours at the Society’s Fort Croghan Days and Christmas at Fort Croghan. Burnet was home, and he loved trying to make “My Town”, the best it could be.

Paul was preceded in death by son Philip; parents Joe and Avis Shell; brother Millard; sisters Jo Nell Stockman and Iva Dell Becker; parents-in-law Pleas and Ruebell Gibson; brothers-in-law Loraine Stockman and Don Modersohn.

He is survived by his wife of sixty-eight years, Peggy Gibson Shell; sons Preston and wife Mary, Patrick and wife Beatrix; grandchildren Jason Shell, Matthew Shell and wife Christy, Rachael and husband Mike Davis, and Perrin Shell; brother-in-law Bill Becker; sister-in-law Gay Modersohn; many nieces, nephews and cousins; and by his beloved dog, Minnie Pearl.

The memorial service at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, September 9th, 2023, at Clements-Wilcox Funeral Home in Burnet will be followed by a reception.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to an animal shelter or a charity of your choice.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.ClementsWilcoxBurnet.com for the Shell family.