Paula Hassler

1927 - 2022

Paula Jean Hassler May 13, 1927 - August 20, 2022 Paula Jean Hassler was born in Denison, Iowa, in 1927, and died in Tempe, Arizona, on August 20, 2022. An old proverb says that when an elderly person dies it is as if an entire library has burned to the ground, but Paula may have beaten those odds. During her lifetime she wrote volumes of stories and anecdotes about her life, many of which have been published in various magazines and newspapers. But her main focus was keeping in touch with family and friends. Paula grew up in the house on the northeast corner of 1st Avenue and 11th Street (1104 1st Avenue S). Her parents were Martin and Ella Runge, and her younger siblings were Martina Lewis and Richard Runge. At age 18 Paula left Denison for college in Boulder, Colorado, but soon found her destiny in New York, Boston, and Chicago. She worked as a model, cocktail waitress, and photo journalist, and traveled through the Caribbean as a synchronized swimmer in the Water Follies. In 1950 she married Bill Muster, settled in Los Angeles, California, and had two children. Later in 1970, she married Don Hassler, and lived out her life in Arizona. She leaves her sister Tina, her daughter Nori Muster, and son Bill Muster (and Melissa); plus three beloved stepchildren, Tom (and Trisha), Mindi, and Richard (and Gail), their children and grandchildren. She will be memorialized at the Zion Lutheran cemetery. Deceased's funeral arrangements The family will hold a memorial in Tempe, Arizona, in early 2023.