Paul E. Rydell - Obituary

aul Emil Rydell, 96, a resident of Baywoods of Annapolis since 2005, died on Tuesday, October 24 at his home. He was born in Raceland, LA on April 27, 1921, to Algoth Janne and Anna Hoj Gustafson Rydell, Swedish immigrants, who met and married in the US. Paul was a graduate of Fortier High School in New Orleans, where he became an Eagle Scout. He studied petroleum engineering at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, where he played the trumpet in the marching band. As a senior in ROTC at LSU in 1943, Paul was inducted into the US Army during WWII. He was a trainer at Officer Candidate School for the Army Corps of Engineers at Fort Belvoir, VA, where he met and married his first wife, Margarette Anne “Peggy” Brooks, who passed away in 1981. In August 1945, as a 2nd Lieutenant, Paul was shipped to Okinawa as part of the forces invading Japan. However, when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the goal of their mission changed from bridge building to organizing Japan’s surrender to the allies. Paul was severely burned during this time and was shipped back to the US to recover. In 1949 Paul began his career with Liberty Mutual and Hardware Mutuals insurance companies. He worked for 35 years as an insurance salesman with Sentry Insurance in Silver Spring, MD. After moving to the Hillandale area in Silver Spring, Paul became very active in the community, serving as President of the Hillandale Citizens Association, President of Springbrook High School’s Booster Club and member of the PTA Board, and President and Board member of the Hillandale Elementary and White Oak Junior High Schools PTAs. He served four terms on the vestry of Our Saviour Episcopal Church. Paul adopted the University of Maryland as his school when he moved to Maryland and remained a loyal Terrapin for almost 70 years. In addition to photography and watercolor painting, he also enjoyed gardening, traveling, and golf. He was a skilled woodworker. Paul was a kind and honorable gentleman, a good friend and loving father, who volunteered his time and heart to supporting the community and caring for others. Paul was preceded in death by his second wife of eight years, Sylvia Brothers Sniffin, who passed away in 1991. He is survived by his wife of 16 years, Anne Arthur Rydell; his children Nancy Rydell Richardson of Menlo Park, CA, Robin Rydell (Michael) Black of Columbia, MD, John Paul Rydell (Sharon Owrutsky) of Reisterstown, MD; granddaughters Sarah Katherine Black (Bill) MacCormack of Eldersburg, MD and Rachel Black (AJ) Machosky of Chicago, IL, and two great-grandchildren Caelan Vaughn and Leah Caroline MacCormack. A Celebration of Life will be held on Monday, November 20 from 1:30 to 3:30 pm at Baywoods of Annapolis, 7101 Bay Front Dr, Annapolis, MD. In lieu of flowers, memorial scholarship contributions in Paul E. Rydell’s honor may be made to the University of Maryland Alumni Association, 7801 Alumni Dr., College Park, MD 20742 for the Brick Campaign.