Paul Leck

Paul was the 11th child of an immigrant miner and his wife. Born in a three bedroom house in a Pennsylvania coal mining town at the start of the Great Depression, he learned at an early age to become self-sufficient. He was pumping gas at the family’s store by the age of five, and repaired a customer’s carburetor at age 9. Getting knocked down and dragged down the street by a passing car didn’t deter him from working on cars, and for most of his life he was the family’s auto mechanic, maintaining all of our cars, in addition to being a carpenter, plumber, and electrician around the house. One of only four children who would complete high school, he joined the US Army immediately after his 1947 graduation, and saw occupation duty in post-World War II Korea. Upon being discharged, he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, where his foreign language skills were put to use in Germany, training agents in radio transmission and receiving. He was later posted to Indonesia, French Indochina, and finally Hong Kong. There, at a party, he met Pamela Hall, a Cathay-Pacific stewardess and recent finalist in the Miss Hong Kong pageant. After marrying, they settled in New Jersey and would spend the next sixty-two years together, raising three children.

A graduate of Rutgers University, Paul then worked as a personnel manager for Mack Trucks, Singer Sewing Machines, Ronson Lighters, Pepsi, and other corporations, before retiring in 1996. Together with his wife, they renovated a house in Ridgefield, Connecticut before moving to Naples, Florida, in 1998. There, Paul was active in boating, fishing, and enjoyed the company of his grandchildren. An avid, lifelong reader, he also loved watching Westerns, as well as traveling extensively to international destinations. Throughout his life, he kept in close contact with all of his ten siblings.

His wife Pamela predeceased him in 2018. He is survived by his sons, Dr. Greg Leck, of Pennsylvania, Jeff Leck (Genevieve), North Carolina, and Charlene, Florida; five grandchildren, and many nephews and nieces.

Raymer-Kepner Funeral Home & Cremation Services is caring for the Leck family.  Memories and condolences may be shared online at www.KepnerFH.com