Paul Wesley Ogle

Paul Wesley Ogle, born on February 24, 1945, in Jacksonville, Illinois, passed away on March 23, 2025, in Denver, Colorado, surrounded by his family and close friends. Raised in Alexander, Illinois, Paul grew up on a farm with his mother, Marguerite Petefish, and stepfather, Wesley Petefish. Tragically, his father was killed in WWII on April 13, 1945, in Okinawa, Japan. Throughout his life, Paul proudly referred to himself as a farm boy from Illinois. He carried the lessons learned from his childhood with him always, embodying the values of hard work, resilience, humility and the gift of family. Paul attended Franklin High School where he excelled academically and fell in love with basketball. He graduated in 1963 and went on to attend Purdue University where he walked on to the Freshman Basketball team, met lifelong friends, and experienced shenanigans that would be a source of laughter and fond memories for years to come. He moved to Colorado and graduated from Metro State College with a degree in Business and in December of 1968 he married his first wife, Sylvia Mader, in Lucerne, Switzerland. They settled in Lakewood, Colorado, where he was hired by the original 1st Bank to purchase and maintain their first IBM Mainframe computer. Paul and Sylvia had two children, Darren Christopher in 1971 and Dawn Andrea Foster in 1974. Paul was passionate about affecting positive change and became heavily involved in politics, beginning in the 70's when he worked on countless campaigns to elect conservative voices, most notably his work to elect astronaut and very dear friend, Jack Swigert to congress in 1982. This time in his life coincided with earning his first pilot's license and cemented his love of flying. He went on to become an instructor and purchased his first Cessna 172, the 3 Bravo Whiskey. He used this to take his (often queasy) family on trips to visit his mother in Scottsdale, Arizona. One of his proudest accomplishments was his work in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union to help train and educate local activists about how to campaign and elect representatives following the end of the Cold War and Soviet Communism. Among the most notable of his mentees was the campaign manager for Boris Yeltsin. A lover of all things technical with a knack for the impulsive, he bought the family a Commodore Vic 20 in 1980 upon which he wrote software including a game for the kids called Magic Cave that to this day has never been defeated, even in recent attempts by Grandchildren Garrett and Tate. His software exploits led him to write a program designed to help smaller airports called Aviation Management Systems, later sold to PHH Aviation Systems. At that time he was asked to manage the US Senate campaign for Terry Considine which later led to his work with Terry at Apartment Investment & Management Company (AIMCO) which later merged with Property Asset Management Company (PAM). Paul was instrumental in taking the company public in 1994 as AIV. Paul later went on to start his own property management consulting firm while continuing his work in politics focused on Congressional term limits. Paul's love of basketball never left him and when he moved to the home he loved deep in the hills of Conifer, Colorado in 2000, he became active in the boys basketball program at Conifer High School. He was also President of the Conifer Chamber of Commerce following many years as an active member of the Lakewood Optimists Club. Above all else, Paul was kind and exceptionally generous. He never hesitated to offer a listening ear, encouragement, and sound advice. Paul's legacy will be cherished by all who knew him, and his memory will live on in the hearts of his loved ones. He is survived by his son, Darren Ogle; daughter, Dawn Livingston (Scott); grandchildren, Kaylie, Garrett, & Tanner Ogle, Tate and Sylvia Livingston; and great grandchildren, Cypress, Juniper, and Ash. A public visitation will be held from 3:00 - 5:00 PM Sunday, March 30, 2025, at The Buchanan & Cody Funeral Home in Jacksonville, Illinois. A private graveside service will be held at a later date at Arcadia Cemetery, north of Jacksonville. If you're so inclined, in lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the American Cancer Society in his name. The Buchanan & Cody Funeral Home in Jacksonville, Illinois is in charge of the arrangements. Condolences may be left online at buchanancody.com. To plant Memorial Trees in memory of Paul Wesley Ogle, please click here to visit our Sympathy Store.