Paul Edward Renas

Paul was born in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania to Hilda Brydebell and Edward Renas. The young family moved to Massillon, Ohio when Paul was a toddler and Ohio would forever be called home. Love of football was formed in Massillon in the shadow of the Canton Football Hall of Fame and his loyalty was given to the Ohio State Buckeyes rather than his alma mater, Case Institute of Technology in Cleveland. Paul graduated from Case in 1951 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He went on to work for Lewis while pursuing a lucrative invitation to the Air Force flight school. But the Korean War intervened and after dropping all his football weight to finally get the interview with the Air Force, he was drafted into the armed forces and in 1954 joined the Army. A happy twist of fate comes while stationed at the Philadelphia Armory. He and some pals went to a New Years Eve dance and he met Libby Hambright who was a nurse at UPenn hospital. They married in November 1955 and lived together happily in Long Island, NY, Westlake and Lake Mohawk, Ohio, and Potomac and Kentlands, Maryland, until Libby’s death in 2017.

Paul worked at NASA in Cleveland until being transferred to NASA in DC in 1972. He worked on jet engine design and was working on a nuclear propulsion aircraft when he retired in 1982. Retired is just as word and Paul was never retired. He built homes, furniture, stained glass and assisted with any project request of a daughter or neighbor. Life in a wheelchair this past year was very difficult but hope was never dimmed and not a month went by without some scheme for a project he hoped to tackle.

He is survived by his four children, Susan (Brian) Balfour, Loren (Charles) Pannell, Jeffrey Renas, and Robyn Renas; his three granddaughters Sarah Balfour McGuire, Kaitlyn Balfour Wondra, and Emily Balfour; and five great-grandchildren.