Gilbert Buckhannan Pauley

Gil grew up in Sumner, Washington, graduating from Sumner High School. He was kind hearted and a friend to all who knew him. He was well known in town growing up, as he had a huge newspaper route for years and his parents owned a small grocery store. He was voted the friendliest guy in his senior class. Gil (known as "Buddy" then) played a lot of baseball and enjoyed fishing in the local streams. His interest in fishing led him to eventually receiving Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Washington School of Fisheries. He was the recipient of the prestigious Thurlow Nelson award for shellfish research.

Shortly after graduation, he married his wife Pat. After graduation, Gil was employed doing research at Battelle near Richland, Washington. His daughter Cindy was born while they lived there. After doing research for a few years, Gil was accepted into the PhD program at UC Irvine and the family was off to Southern California. After receiving his PhD, Gil did research in fisheries in St. Michaels, Maryland and Leetown, West Virginia. Gil was delighted to bring his family back to the Pacific Northwest and take a position at the University of Washington as a professor in the School of Fisheries. He did research, taught classes and mentored graduate students for over 25 years. He also published over 160 peer reviewed research papers in his field. He was also advisor to the court in the wake of the Boldt decision for many years, working to preserve the fishery.

Upon his retirement, he worked for 20 years at Brookside Dental with his wife, daughter, and son in law who are all dentists. He was a huge asset to the business, always looking forward and keeping them on top of new computer technologies. He loved his interactions with patients and staff while there. He grew amazing dahlias and was known for creating beautiful bouquets for the office.

Gil loved taking his grandchildren (Jordan and Tyler) to their various sports and classes and attended everything he possibly could. His positive influence in their lives remains one of his greatest gifts. Gil lived a wonderful, interesting and productive life despite an almost fatal bout with Crohn's disease in his late teens and the chronic nature of the disease. Two weeks before his passing, he had a wonderful reunion with his high school class in Sumner. On June 18th he celebrated his 84th birthday and Father’s Day with all of his family. He is survived by his wife, Patricia, his daughter, Cynthia Pauley Cave, his son in law, Brian Cave, and his grandsons, Tyler Cave and Jordan Cave.

The family will be having a private service for Gil.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.CedarLawns-Washington.com for the Pauley family.