Paul Joseph Camella

Paul Joseph Camella Jr. was born on June 7, 1951 and left us suddenly on April 10, 2020 at the age of 68. Paul lost his short battle with COVID-19 in the comfort of his home with his wife Anna at his side. Always a jokester, Paul requested no funeral and that the news of his passing not be shared for three weeks. Due to the restrictions on funerals during this Coronavirus pandemic, he will be getting half of his wish, for now.

Paul was born in New York City to Paul Joseph Camella, Sr. and Edith (nee Iervolino). He attended Holy Rosary School in the Bronx, Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains and received his BBA and MBA from Iona College in New Rochelle where his lifetime of community volunteering began.

He was an active member of the Tara Knights, Gaelic Society, Delta Lambda Kappa Fraternity and received the “Good Guy” award for his work on the Student Government while at college. When living in Bergenfield, Paul was a member of the local chapter of Lions Club International. After moving to Woodcliff Lake, he was elected to the Borough Council, served as Fire Commissioner, and was Past President of Woodcliff Lake UNICO, an Italian American Service Organization. UNICO’s motto of “Service Above Self” describes Paul perfectly. Additionally, he was a member and Past President of the Woodcliff Lake Educational Foundation, which honored him as the WCLEF Person of the Year in 2008. He was a volunteer on Woodcliff Lake’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and Deputy Coordinator of the Office of Emergency Management. He was also a parishioner of Our Lady Mother of the Church, where he served on the Family Life Committee.

Paul had a successful career in commercial Real Estate. His involvement with the International Council of Shopping Centers included Chairmanship of the NYS Government Relations Committee and the NY Alliance Private Sector. He spent a significant portion of his career working in the real estate department of Pathmark Stores. While at Pathmark, he was on the supervisory committee of the company’s credit union, ultimately becoming the Chairman of the credit union’s Board of Directors. He also serves on the State of NJ Department of Banking and Insurance Credit Union Advisory Council. He had many friends and colleagues throughout the years, many of whom he still spoke with regularly. In later years, he started his own real estate development company, Camella Realty LLC.

Paul’s greatest joys were his two children, Anne-Frances and Paul William. He coached soccer and basketball, attending every game, and especially loved telling the story of Anne-Frances showing up to her first soccer match in patent leather shoes! From an early age, Paul William would sit on the counter watching him making the family sauce with the secret ingredient, passing on his excellent culinary skills in the process and sparking Paul William’s career as a chef.

He loved boating. He never said no to taking Paul William and his friends out on the boat, the first being the “Camella Yacht” - his 10-foot inflatable boat - and later his 27-foot cabin cruiser. His love of being on the water led him to join the US Coast Guard Auxiliary. He served as a Past Commander of his Flotilla as well as the Finance Officer of his Division. You could always find him kayaking up and down the Hudson River on the weekends in the summer and he had been looking at new boats this year.

But Paul was much more than just the things he did. His warmth and unique sense of humor meant he was constantly making new friends. He “wrapped” his presents in plastic bags and we all called it a Paul Camella special. His favorite meal was a hot dog and soda from Costco and he would always say it was the best deal in town. He welcomed son-in-law Rich into the family with open arms and the promise of an alpaca farm.

In 2015 he received the title he was most proud of thanks to the birth of his grandson Ricky Hveem. Being ‘Pop Pop’ to his best buddy Ricky was the highlight of his life. He came to every swim lesson, soccer game, gymnastics practice and was looking forward to Ricky playing t-ball. He bought Ricky a fishing pole for his recent 5th birthday and told everyone how excited he was to take him fishing. Ricky may have been his best buddy, but Reilly and Hailey were his princesses. When Reilly was born, it was obvious they shared the same sparkle of mischief in their eyes and were going to be partners in crime - probably in trouble for sneaking snacks. Hailey, his favorite youngest granddaughter, mastered saying Pop Pop early on and would start excitedly saying it any time she saw him or heard his voice.

Many mornings he would come over with breakfast to have with the kids before Ricky went to school, often juggling phone calls from his many activities. Then he would stay and have coffee with Anne-Frances and read books with the girls before leaving to start his work day. For 47 years, he spent a lot of time driving in his car scouting many locations for work. He had visited a lot of places, but his favorite destination was back home with us.

COVID-19 may have stolen this past month of time with him and ultimately taken him from us, but he gave us a lifetime of laughter, stories, and good times. We will miss him endlessly.

Paul is survived by his college sweetheart, Annamarie (nee Reilly), daughter Anne-Frances (Rich) Hveem, son Paul William, cherished grandchildren Ricky, Reilly and Hailey Hveem, sister Rose Camella Phelps, brothers-in-law William (Lucy) Reilly, and John (Kim) Reilly, many nieces, nephews, cousins, wonderful friends and colleagues.

Becker Funeral Home in Westwood, NJ is handling the arrangements. There will be a private viewing for his immediate family only with a Memorial to be planned for a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider making a donation in Paul’s memory to the Coast Guard Auxiliary Association and to please include ‘In Memory of Paul Camella’ with the donation in the memo section of the check or in the comment section online:

By mail:

Coast Guard Auxiliary Association

9449 Watson Industrial Park

St. Louis, MO 63126

Online:

https://auxcen.com/donate-to-the-association/

There will be a future Memorial Service celebrating Paul's life and faith. Please check back for date, time and place.

Thank you.