Paul Samuel Bishop

Paul Samuel Bishop, beloved husband, father, brother, grandfather, and friend, passed away peacefully at home in Bellevue, Washington, in the early morning hours on September 12, 2022, surrounded by his family. He was 80 years old.

Paul was born in Flint Michigan, on January 2nd, 1942, to Maxine and Curtis Bishop. He was the second of four children, and always remained close with his siblings. They had monthly zoom calls together up through the last week of his life.

He spent his childhood in Michigan, in Flint and Lapeer, and many happy summers at the family cottage at Higgins Lake.

He was an avid basketball player in high school and graduated from Arthur Hill High School. He then attended Michigan State University and his blood runs green as a lifelong loyal Spartan! He loved music throughout his life and in college started a band, the Curbside Singers, who played throughout his undergraduate years.

Paul then became the first member of his family to leave the state of Michigan and drove cross country to San Francisco to work at Wells Fargo Bank. He met his first wife, Barbara Irene Bishop, in San Francisco, and they married in 1969. A few years later, they returned to Michigan where he attended Detroit Law School.

Paul and Barbara had two children, Katina and Erik. They moved to Washington State in 1980, where Paul established his long career in Estate Law. He was Vice President and Corporate Counsel for Laird, Nortan Trust Company, and a partner at Short Cressman and Burgess for many years. He then became a partner of the firm Vander Wel, Jacobson, Bishop, and Kim, PLLC, in Bellevue, Washington.

In 1995, he married Barbara Pendras, and they were married for 27 years at the time of his passing. They shared many passions over the decades: travel, golf, hiking, pickleball, daily morning walks, and time with friends and family, especially their adoring grandchildren. For more than 20 years they split their time between Kirkland WA, and Tucson and Phoenix AZ, and considered both places home.

Paul was a man of many interests who could not be easily defined: he loved opera and basketball, pickleball and banjo, sailing and the stock market, vitamins, and supplements right alongside his chocolate doughnuts. He lived in the Bay Area during the civil rights movement and was passionate throughout his life about equality for all.

Paul was a member of the Bellevue Rotary Club for many years and served as President for a time. He had a strong commitment to Rotary's work in Africa on clean water, health, and hygiene, and spent time in Ethiopia working on these issues. From these experiences, he and Barbara were moved to establish the Paul Bishop and Barbara Pendras Family Endowment for Developing Countries, dedicated to supporting East African youth.

He was known to all for his kindness, humor, passionate debating, and deep love of his family and community.

Paul is survived by his loving friends and family: his wife Barbara Pendras, his children, Katina Bishop and Erik Bishop (Alisha), step-children, Maureen Pendras (Eric), and Mark Pendras (Katy) and his grandchildren, Mateo, Eli, Noah, Maxine, Leoni, and Tessa.

There will be a celebration of his life on November 11, 2022, at the Bellevue Club in Bellevue, Washington at 5 pm.

In lieu of flowers, gifts can be made to the Paul Bishop and Barbara Pendras Family Endowment for Developing Countries: https://givingto.msu.edu/paul-bishop-memorial