OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Paul David Olson, 80, of Olympia, Wash., formerly of Montevideo, died Monday at Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul, due to lung problems.
The service will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at Sunset Cemetery in Montevideo. Services were also held Thursday at Roseville Lutheran Church in Roseville.
Local arrangements are by the Anderson Funeral Home in Montevideo. Arrangements are also by the Carlson-Lillemoen Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Cambridge.
He was born March 19, 1928, in Montevideo to Hilmar and Alma Olson. He graduated in 1946 from Montevideo High School. He served in the U.S. Army, where he served as a medic. Then he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and was commissioned as an ensign in 1951.
He married Elizabeth 'Jill' Christianson on July 27, 1954. He studied civil engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y. Later, he received his master's degree in business administration from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. During his naval career, he served at many duty stations around the United States. He retired from the Navy as a captain in 1978. He then worked for the Washington Public Power Supply System in Richland and Olympia, Wash.
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He was a life long member of the Lutheran Church where he sang in choirs for more than 60 years and served on many committees.
He is survived by his five daughters: Heidi (and Allen) Gieske of Lindstrom, Elizabeth (and Keith) Gilbert of St. Paul, Sara (and Rodney) Elmstrand of North Branch, Kirsten (and Joel) Wees of Olympia, Wash., and Kari (and Christopher) Olson Hall of Boston; 20 grandchildren; and two sisters: LeNore (and Paul) Olson and Carol Kittelson-Hill.
He was preceded in death by his wife.
