Paul R. Lopata

1935 - 2017

Paul Richard Lopata, 81, of Tempe, Ariz., passed away Jan. 9, 2017. Paul was born April 4, 1935, the third of six children, to Paul and Emma Lopata in East Vandergrift. Paul attended Vandergrift High School, where he was captain of the football team and earned All-State honors and played on the basketball and baseball teams. He went on to attend Yale University, where he earned a scholarship. Along with graduating with a B.S. in industrial administration, he was a standout athlete on the football team. Paul was an All-Ivy League First Team selection in 1955 and 1956. In 1956, he was also voted to the All-East and All-New England teams and was a third team Associated Press All-American. In 1960, Paul was selected to the All-Ivy league First Team for the decade of the 1950s. Paul was selected as one of the all-era Yale Bowl team members as part of the Yale Bowl's centennial celebration in 2014. Paul was the 93rd pick in the 1957 NFL draft by the Washington Redskins. He was recruited by the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers and received a contract offer from the Redskins, which he decided to decline in favor of starting a family and business career. Paul married his high school sweetheart, Dolores Zinchini, in 1955. Paul and Dolores started their family in Pennsylvania and, in 1960, moved to the Chicago area. Paul went on to have a successful career in the medical marketing industry in Chicago. In 1977, Paul and Dolores relocated the family to Tempe, Ariz., where Paul continued to work in the medical marketing industry until he retired. Paul loved his family and will always be remembered as a loving and caring husband, father, brother, uncle and grandfather. Paul was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 43 years, Dolores, his children, Christopher and Jennifer, and his brothers, Andrew and Edward. He is survived by his loving companion, Jeany Stowell; children, Michael (wife Rene), Jaime (wife Cheryl) and Matthew (wife Suzanne); grandchildren, Derrick, Ross, Kimberly, Cecily, Rocco, Finley, Rhys, Tate and Robert; and siblings, Dorothy Zelonka, James Lopata and Marianne Oresky.
Services were private.