Samuel E. Paper

Samuel E. Paper, age 85, of Citrus Heights, California passed away April 8th, 2022 following a short illness. Sam was a kind and charming man who had a gift for gab and a child-like fascination with the world around him. In any room, Sam would quickly make friends. Any environment was fair game; Sam would strike up meaningful and fun conversations with Customer Service Reps on the phone, fellow shoppers standing in a check-out line, or park patrons out for a stroll.
These character traits made Sam a natural salesman. As a young man in North Dakota, Sam leveraged his passion for music and people to open a vinyl record store. A call to military service pulled him away from the store but did not lessen his entrepreneurial spirit. Sam moved around the Midwest, discovering new career opportunities. He met his wife while living in the Twin Cities. Their family grew from two to three, when they adopted a newborn baby girl, Stacy, in Omaha. The trio put down roots in Cedar Rapids, Iowa where they opened a successful culinary store, KitchenWorks.
After his marriage, Sam relocated to California to start anew. He leveraged his business relationships to foster a sales career. Ever the doting father, Sam's proximity to Oakland gave him the challenge of finding new Oakland Raiders memorabilia for his fanatical daughter. In retirement, Sam was active in his community. He attended multiple "meetups" each month; fostering friendships and always finding something new to talk about, "you know?" Sam will be dearly missed. May his memory be a blessing.
Sam was preceded in death by his parents, Alex and Eva, and his brothers Thomas and Michael. He is survived by brothers David and Robert, many nieces and nephews, his cat, Lucy, and his daughter, Stacy J. Sciarra (Richard Coates), of St. Petersburg, Florida.
Sympathy cards may be sent to Ms. Sciarra, however, in lieu of flowers, donations are preferred to: the ACLU, Lambda Legal, The Trevor Project, amfAR, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) or Menorah Manor of St. Petersburg, FL.