Paul Vears

Long-time Bedford resident Paul Vears died at Lahey Hospital on November 13 at age 84, following a fall. Though he hoped to return to his home, he had recently moved to Brightview in Billerica after struggling with multiple health issues for several years.
Paul grew up in Cambridge and worked with the Lexington DPW on many road and municipal construction projects, including the building of Route 128. Later he was the sexton at the First Parish in Lincoln.
He was proud of his BMW motorcycles and he savored lobster, martinis, Earl Grey tea with milk, and good company. In his youth, he was fond of hunting, skiing, and nude beaches.
Linda, his first wife, died tragically in a 1982 house fire in Vermont, a loss that deeply affected him. Until they divorced, he was married to Jean Balfour who introduced him to Bedford’s First Parish Church. There he made friends, attended potlucks and parties, and often occupied a far-corner pew on Sunday mornings.
He once visited First Parish’s partner church in Transylvania where, having missed connections in Bucharest, he infamously got a Romanian-speaking taxi-driver to take him several hours to remote Hungarian-speaking Abásfalva, arriving at 3 am.
He enjoyed the casino at Foxwoods but never hit it big. His Red Sox cap was well worn and faded.
Until his health failed, he was a founding member of the informal First Parish dining-anddrinking group, the Grumpy Old Men.
Paul was often solitary, sensitive, and obstinate, but he remained deeply appreciative of the friendship and help he received from neighbors, parishioners, and caregivers. He has no immediate survivors.
His ashes will be buried with his first wife at the Wildwood Cemetery in Gardner, MA, as well as in the First Parish Memorial Garden.
There will be an opportunity to share remembrances of Paul, raise a toast, and share a light lunch at 11 am on Friday, January 31 in the Common Room at First Parish.