Paul Melvin Dolan

Paul Dolan was born in Melrose, MA to Charles and Ruth Walton Dolan. He was the 5th of their 6 children.

His parents died when the children were young – Paul was age 2 when Ruth died (during giving birth) and 7 when Charles died (tuberculosis) – when they were all taken in and raised by the Dr. Rev. Jeannie K. Sherman and June Shafner. They subsequently moved to Timber Lake, South Dakota where Paul graduated from Timber Lake High School.

Paul attended Sioux Falls College (now the University of Sioux Falls) where he met his first wife, Dorothy Renner. They married in December of 1957 and had 4 children, Tamla, Rebecca, Kenton, and Rhonda.

Paul had a varied career path throughout his life in various locations. His friend, Bill Shafer introduced Paul to carpentry and building houses. With this training, Paul eventually arrived in Ogallala, NE working for Capp Homes. He would travel during the week to build homes and return to Ogallala on the weekends. He and Dorothy were active in the Berean Fundamental Church in Ogallala.

After the death of Paul’s youngest daughter (in 1986), Paul and Dorothy divorced. Paul married JoAnn Morris in October, 1992. They lived in Colorado for several years where Paul continued to use his carpentry skills to build several churches within the Denver area. His last major project was bringing a new dining hall to fruition at Camp Judson (his childhood camp) in Rapid City, SD.

Following the dining hall project, Paul and JoAnn moved to Willamina, OR and became members of the First Nazarene Church and were highly active in the congregation. One of their great joys for many years was dancing Friday evenings at the Grange Hall in McMinnville.

Paul is survived by his wife, JoAnn and his children, Tamla, Rebecca and Kenton. Grandchildren, Courtny, Jackson and Wilem and his great-grandson, George.

Joy would always find a way, when you were in the presence of Paul Dolan.