Paula D. Chachula

Paula was born on April 26, 1930, in Springfield, Ukraine, a village for people of German descent living in Ukraine. She was one of 12 children and the 5th daughter of Frederick and Olga (Wesch) Hochhalter. After Paula's father passed away on her 5th birthday, her mother was left alone with all the children and together they endured many tragic hardships of WWII. They were uprooted from their home and over the years forced to move around into refugee camps to escape the dangers of the times.

When Paula was a teenager, she was assigned to be a nanny for a military officer's young twins. Paula loved this job. She found the work gratifying and her employer was very kind. The Russian Major lived over a theater, and she had the perk of escaping to the movies during her free time. This fun soon ended as her family was forced once again to be on the move.

Eventually her family just barely escaped to the West and found safety in Coburg, Germany where they lived for several years. There she studied and worked in the gardening field for a short time, then switched to painting figurines for the Goebel porcelain factory. In 1952 her Uncle Alex from Chicago offered to sponsor the whole family and Paula immigrated through New York to the U.S. and to Chicago, Illinois.

Almost immediately, Paula took a full-time job at the offices of Welsh Scientific Co. and was able to pitch in for her family's living expenses. She began her journey to becoming an American citizen; attending a program where she kept busy learning English and taking other courses in preparation for her citizenship. As a young adult, Paula loved hanging out with her friends and family and like many young people her age she was excited about her independence. In her time off work, she made lifelong memories traveling the country and the world with friends.

Paula married Tony on May 26, 1962, and lived in his family's building in Ukrainian Village - Chicago where they started their own family. In 1976 they bought their own home in Oak Lawn, IL, where they developed many lifelong friendships and resided for the remainder of their years. She was a dedicated wife, mother, and homemaker and later a fun and loving grandmother who cherished and found great happiness in her role caring for her grandchildren and their dogs.

Throughout life, Paula had a wide array of interests including exercising, bowling league, singing, dancing, gardening, cooking, coin collecting, reading novels, drawing, doing word search puzzles, and playing gambling and bowling computer games. She was entertained watching her favorite programs and movies, especially Young and the Restless, as she was one of the original fans. Paula built into her daily routine game shows like Wheel of Fortune, and she never missed a season of reality competition shows like Dancing with the Stars and Survivor. She ended every day with the nightly news informed and sharp minded through her final days. She loved family vacations and, in later years, treasured memorable trips with her husband to tropical islands and across Europe.

Always central to Paula's life was the fellowship she had with her family and friends. Her home was open to drop-by visitors where many of her traditional home cooked recipes were shared and especially during the holidays when her famous and beloved, beautiful Christmas cookies came out. Stories of her past were often told and many times her accounts ended by her saying, "I've been an American citizen and lived here longer than anywhere else. I love this country; it's been my best home."

Paula passed away peacefully in her home on June 21, 2025, with family by her side. She was the devoted wife of 60 years to the late Anatoly (Tony) Chachula, loving mother to Julie (Bill Galbreath), cherished grandmother to Nikki and Jackie. Paula is predeceased by and reunited with all her beloved sisters: Lydia, Melitta, Clara, Olga, and Ellie; and dear aunt to many nieces and nephews and their families. She was a fond friend and neighbor to all those who knew her.

Paula will forever be missed and remembered by all who knew and loved her for her warmth, affection and lively spirit.