Paul Daryl Oberley, 88 of Minford passed away Saturday, December 23, 2023 at his residence. He was born August 28, 1935 in Scioto County, a son of the late Lowell and Gertrude Frowine Oberley.
Paul graduated from Minford High School in the class of ’53, and when he found out he would be drafted, joined the U.S. Army. He served for four years in Germany where he was an air traffic controller. Paul married Carol Meenach in ’56. They were married for 30 years and had two children, Tony and Katherine. They remained friends to the end.
Paul’s life was filled with many talents and adventures. He was a Boy Scout leader, a Lion’s Club member, and an avid outdoorsman, making many trips to Canada. He worked at the A-Plant in construction, and ran the cafeteria at Parker Pen in Wisconsin. He then worked for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, managing their cafeteria and being a personal chef to the newspaper tycoon Thomas Vail. Paul also became a pilot and flew with a group of guys in Minford.
The majority of the last 50 plus years of his life were spent as a contractor, with his talents spread far and wide. He built a few homes in the Shoemaker addition, then he and Ken Rase began to change the landscape of Minford developing Rase’s Mountain, then Portsmouth, building the Courthouse Annex. He moved to Florida and built numerous homes including ones in the Oberley Subdivision in Homestead. He worked for Disney at Epcot building the Lands building, and last year, when he and Martha visited Epcot and The Lands, the current team honored him by making him Captain of the Day, giving him a Captain’s hat and a certificate of thanks. After leaving Florida, Paul moved to Franklin, North Carolina and built many homes. He was able to pass on his business there to his son Tony.
In 1999, Paul moved home to Minford to marry Martha, with whom he had many great adventures for 24.5 years. One of Paul’s last projects was building the Minford Post office. He never really retired, helping Tony and his team construct the home that Paul and Martha have lived in for the past 5 years. Paul loved to garden, which is typically where you would find him in the summer; he was even able to enjoy his last days gardening this last summer. His sweet corn was the best around. Paul’s family was the light of his world. He adored his grandbabies, and they adored him. They called him Papaw or Abba (because of a song he sang to them). Paul had a full life here, and now he begins his forever. He was a lifelong member of Minford United Methodist Church.
He is survived by the love of his life, Martha Nichols Oberley; four children, Tony (Sam) Oberley, Anna Katherine (Mike) Collier, Mikell Rase, Cassidy (Derrick) Mirmohamed; a special nephew who was like a son, Tim Smith; ten grandchildren, Daryl Oberley, David Oberley, Jessica Clemente, Justin Brown; Cohen, Remy, Finn, and Brooks Mirmohamed, Presley Boggs, Jack Colley; eight great grandchildren; two sisters, Nancy Smith, Patsy Graham, and a special friend, Ken Rase. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by one brother, Gene Oberley.
Funeral services will be conducted at 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, December 27, 2023 at Erwin-Dodson-Allen Funeral Home in Minford with Rick Clark officiating. Friends may call at the funeral home from Noon to 2:00 p.m. prior to the service.