PAUL D. MERRIAM

ROCKLAND – Paul D. Merriam, 94, husband of the late Doris Blackman Merriam, died peacefully Sunday, Aug. 20, 2006, at the Homestead in Owl’s Head, where he had resided for the past two years. Born Feb. 3, 1912, in Belmont, Mass., he was the son Parker Small and Hattie Emery Merriam. Spending most of his youth in Owls Head, Paul was a 1930 graduate of Rockland High School and attended the University of Maine. He worked at the Rockland Post Office for 31 years, first as a clerk in the finance office and later as assistant postmaster. He retired in 1971, but continued his active life in civic affairs, in his church; and as a volunteer in numerous local organizations for the next three decades, both before and after retirement. This included the First Baptist Church of Rockland, where he sang in choir and with the men’s quartet, and served as church treasurer for several years. He was a member local Masonic bodies of Rockland, serving as master of the Rockland Lodge of Masons; and as member of the King Solomon Temple, The Scottish Rites, and the Maine Consistory. As a founding member of the Rockland school district, which was responsible for building Rockland’s two new elementary schools in the 1940s and 1950s, he was elected to each successive term and served as its only treasurer until 1959, when MSAD 5 was formed to replace it. He was also a founding member of the Shore Village Historical Society, now the Rockland Historical Society; a trustee and treasurer of the Rockland Cemetery Association, a trustee of the Northeast Health Foundation and a member of the Rockland Kiwanis Club, for many years. He also served on numerous civic and municipal boards and committees. In 1978, he was honored by receiving the Rockland Jaycee’s “Annual Distinguished Service Award.” Paul loved the outdoors and nature, especially the woods and the shore. His children remember fondly the Sunday afternoon walks with him in the woods and along the shore, where he taught them where to find spruce gum and many other things about Maine’s natural environment. This love of the natural world was also reflected in his long-time membership in the Mid-coast Audubon Society and the Oyster River Bog Association, for both of which he served as a trustee. Retirement afforded him an opportunity to spend much more time outdoors, especially in the woods at the Owls Head Transportation Museum, where he was an early member. There, almost single-handedly, he created, marked and maintained a system of trails and quiet clearings in the woods on both sides of the entrance road. In 1979, the directors of the museum honored him by dedicating this effort as the “Paul Merriam Nature Park” and granted him a lifetime membership. He was also well known in his south end neighborhood and by regular passers-by for his meticulous care of his own yard, where he spent many hours each week in season keeping his trees, shrubs, and especially his lawn, well-groomed. Into his 90s, he continued to use mostly hand tools and a vintage non-powered push mower for that purpose. According to his children, Paul was a good and loving father who took a keen interest in their education and activities. Whether it was a PTA meeting or fund-raiser, the scouts, school activities or sports, he was usually actively involved. He placed a high premium on education, and it is a tribute to him that all of his children who lived to adulthood earned degrees in higher education. He was predeceased by his wife of 68 years, Doris in 2003; sons, Parker S. Merriam II and Fred B. Merriam; and brother, Donald E. Merriam. He is survived by four sons, Paul G. “Gil” Merriam of Rockland, Robert D. Merriam of Bangor, Kendall A. Merriam and his wife, Phyllis, of Rockland and Marshall G. Merriam and his wife, Paula, of Owl’s Head; one daughter, Joy Peters and her husband, the Rev. Robert Peters, of Mexico, Maine; a daughter-in-law, Joan Merriam of Bucksport; two sisters, Virginia Thomas of Camden and Dorothea Gross of Eugene, Ore.; 12 grandchildren, Steven Merriam and Karyn Bolter, both of San Diego, Lisa Persson, John Merriam and Joel Merriam, all of Bangor, Peter Merriam of San Antonio, Daniel Merriam of Rockport, Traci Merriam of Bucksport, Jason Merriam of Rockport, Aaron Merriam of South Portland, Matthew Peters of Mexico, Maine, Jonathan Peters of Clarksville, Tenn.; nineteen great-grandchildren, one great-great-granddaughter, as well as several nieces and nephews. Visiting hours will be held 7-9 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, at Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock St., Rockland, where a funeral service will be held 11 a.m. Wednesday, with the Rev. Gabriel Rogers officiating. Interment will be after the service at Achorn Cemetery, Rockland. Those who wish may make memorial contributions to First Baptist Church, 215 Limerock St., Rockland, ME 04841 or to Rockland Historical Society, P.O. Box 1331, Rockland, ME 04841.