Johnnie R. Paul (1952-1955)

Johnnie reported aboard the USS Spangler on March 25, 1952, along with his shipmate Gene Workman.  They served as Quartermaster/ Signalman together until both transferred from the Spangler shortly before the ship headed to Japan in September 1955.

Johnnie was full of spirit, a fun loving guy with a wonderful smile and a head of wavy, black hair to be envied.  He and Ann were already into their married life when he was drafted into the service.  As was his shipmate Gene and his wife, Dorothy.

Ann and Dorothy wasted no time in heading west from Ohio as soon as they knew that San Diego would be their husband's home port.  They loaded up a car and off they went for the 2200 mile trip.  Johnnie and Ann's first daughter, Connie, came along about a year later in November of 1953 -- helping Ann stave off the many days of boredom while the Spangler and her husband were operating for months at a time out of Hawaii.

On leaving the service in 1955, Johnnie returned home to go back to work for Morris-Bean and Company near Dayton Ohio, a manufacturer of aluminum and ductile iron castings, drives and gears, including space vehicle equipment.  He retired from there in the mid 90's. He and Ann purchased a new home in Xenia, OH, in 1958 and the family lived there until 1968; when they bought their present home in Jamestown, OH.  They had three daughters, Connie, Barbara and Adrienne, six grandsons and eight great-grandchildren. Johnnie love to work in his yard, hunt and fish and was a member of the Greene Co. Fish and Game.  Connie, oldest of the three daughters, writes of her Mom and Dad, that they " had a lot of fun after they retired.  They had a motor home and would go

camping with their friends, to places like Rocky Fork Lake, here in Ohio, and to Renfro Valley, in Tennessee. They had a ball!!  They were always going out to eat with their friends.   I felt like the parent at times; I'd call or go to their house and they wouldn't be home.   I'd finally catch up to them and ask them "Where have you been!" Dad, she said, "always decorated the outside of the house at Halloween and Christmas.  He'd put lights up and all kinds of decorations.   I suppose we'll carry on for him in his absence, for Mom." Sadly, Johnnie passed away on Sept. 20, 2009 following a battle with cancer, but not without first reconnecting with some old friends from his Navy days. Some he had not had contact with in over 50-years.

Connie had researched the internet in hopes of finding her dad's ship. And on discovering the Spangler's website, sought help in acquiring a Spangler cap and tee shirt as a surprise gift for her dad.  Her youngest sister, Adriene, along with her mother's help, collected, scanned and sent in Johnnie's photos from his navy days to be included in a photo album published on the website.

Connie's efforts made it possible for her dad to renew friendships with several old shipmates, Gene Workman being one of them.  When Gene and his wife Dorothy stopped by for a visit recently, it gave a big boost to Johnnie's spirits. The two old shipmates looked great together again, don't you think?

Having shared emails with Johnnie's three daughters and read their notes in the Spangler Guestbook, it's easy to understand why Johnnie would likely say with pride that his greatest accomplishments in life were marrying Ann and having those three beautiful daughters, and wonderful grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  The daughters are clearly a reflection of their mom and dad -- very caring, very loving!

Barb (Barbara), his middle daughter sees herself as the son her dad never had, a point debated by Connie, who see herself as "the boy Dad never had"...I was the tomboy, she said; Barb was always tagging behind Mom."  Either way, what Barb had to say about her Dad likely speaks for all three of the sisters: "I had the best life growing up...camping, mushroom hunting, swimming, drive in movies, vacations, ice skating, cutting our own tree for Christmas, water fights, sled riding they even kept their promise when they bought a home with some land and bought me my own Arabian horse (an Appaloosa, Echo, in Connie's case), gosh I loved those horses!  I'm the animal "freak" of the family, when I started kindergarten I brought every animal that was not fenced in home with me.  Dad & Mom finally bought me a dachshund to keep me from "stealing" everyone else's pets.

Connie, in writing of her dad, said "he was very proud of his Navy days, and talked about them often.  Dad, she said, " is so patriotic; he hangs his American flag out at 8 am and takes it down at 8 pm every day!  He has all kinds of patriotic stuff, and also has all kinds of Navy stuff sitting all around the house.  He is proud of his country, and his service to his country."

A special thanks is extended to Connie for her editing here and for her, Barb and Adriene's entries in the Guestbook requesting everyone's thoughts and prayers and keeping us updated on Johnnie.