Paul C. Gay Esq.

Paul C. Gay died after a long illness on December 29, 2014 at his home on Salters Point. Paul lived in South Dartmouth with his wife, Virginia (“Ginny”) Forrest Gay. He is also survived by his children, Elizabeth Stewart Gay of South Dartmouth, John Sumner Gay (with his wife, Misty Althizer) of Easthampton, Massachusetts, and many friends and admirers.

Paul was born on May 1, 1929 in Norwood, Massachusetts. His mother, Julia Kanalski Gay, along with his maternal grandparents and many uncles and aunts, raised him. He graduated from Norwood High School, Northeastern University and Boston University Law School, later serving as a Captain in the United States Air Force and the Massachusetts Air National Guard.

After his admission to the Massachusetts Bar, Paul joined the law firm of Sloane and Poppolo in Dedham, Massachusetts. While living in Walpole with Ginny and his two young children, Paul became an assistant register of probate in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, and later was elected Register of Probate in 1972. He taught at Northeastern University for 35 years, and sponsored substantive Probate and Family Court reform. In 1979, he returned to private practice at Harrison and McGuire, and later, at Barron and Stadfeld, before opening his own practice specializing in estate planning and real estate law. He was proud of the fact that he never retired.

His work as a military officer, as a lawyer and as a public servant gave him contact with all aspects of humanity. He fulfilled every responsibility with excellence and joy. Although possessing a superior and sophisticated intellect, Paul never took on the qualities of hubris and self-importance that often inure great men.

Those fortunate many to have listed Paul as a friend will miss his bear hug embrace, his enthusiast tenor voice, and his eyewitness accounts of a perfect sunset over Mishaum Point. They will also celebrate a man who thrived in multi-generational homes, grew up in a multi-cultural neighborhood, and survived the Great Depression, all the while exceeding every expectation. Paul will forever be an engaged and vibrant giant of our memories. His family and friends survive him in gratitude, honored by the simple joy that we knew him, and were made better by him.

In accordance with Paul’s wishes, there will be no funeral. Instead, he has asked that you remember him from time to time, as you rest by a tumtum tree, standing a while in thought.

Please visit: www.waring-sullivan.com to share condolences, memories and tributes with his family. For those who wish, donations may be made in Paul’s memory to: the Fort Taber Military Museum (http://forttaber.org/make-a-contribution/)