Paul E. Riley

November 18, 1941- February 20, 2022

Paul was born in Syracuse, NY, the first of George and Mary Riley’s 4 children. He was raised in Minoa, NY, a village east of Syracuse. Upon graduation from high school Paul followed in his father’s footsteps to the University of Toronto to major in chemistry. In 1959 Paul’s world opened in Toronto where he attended school with students from all over the world. After receiving his B.S. at the University of Toronto, Paul headed to the University of Hawaii where he completed his masters and PhD in chemistry and x-ray crystallography. Paul enjoyed academic research for 29 of his 80 years. He declined to explain his work to us because he knew we would be clueless! He always took his work seriously and dedicated his life to his career.

There was another side to Paul. He remained single. Paul had a charming dry wit, always a gentleman, and had a soft generous heart. He was a loyal son who made the long trips home to visit his parents. Paul also took his down time seriously. After leaving NY he became an avid snow skier and tennis player. He regularly made time to travel to places with interesting histories.

Paul retired from the semiconductor business at age 68. He launched his retirement by immediately joining the U.S. Peace Corps in Mexico as a volunteer in technology transfer. Paul’s job in the Peace Corps was to mentor graduate students to improve their scientific research writing and opportunities for publication. In his free time he enjoyed exploring the geography, history and culture of Mexico. Paul was a lifelong learner.

Paul returned to California from Mexico in 2014. Three years later it was retrospectively evident he had Parkinson’s Disease with Lewy body dementia. Sadly his years of a fulfilling independent life came to an abrupt end in 2019. Paul spent his final three years in Charlotte, NC with family oversight. His final resting place is St. Mary’s Cemetery in Cortland, NY with the Riley family.

Anyone wishing to honor Paul with a memorial please consider Parkinson’s disease research through The Michael J. Fox Foundation or dementia research through The Alzheimer’s Association.

Donations may be made at Michaeljfox.org or Alz.org