Paul Austin

Dear family and friends,

My husband, Paul, passed away Monday, July 14, 2025, due to Parkinson’s disease at 81 years of age. Born Eugene Paul Austin, Jr., in Los Angeles, CA, on August 16, 1943, Paul grew up with a love of music, superheroes, airplanes, and cats. Due to his parents’ divorce, Paul and his beloved sisters, Bonnie and Karen, moved regularly, sometimes living with their father, Eugene Paul Austin, and sometimes with their mother, Myrna, so Paul was almost always the new kid in class each year. As a teen, Paul was sent to live with his Uncle Ray and Aunt Fay in Utah, and though he missed his sisters terribly he gained much needed stability in his life. His grades went up, and his self-confidence increased.

In 1964, he enlisted in the Air Force. An aptitude test suggested that he was well suited for medical duties, and he trained as a laboratory technologist. He was discharged in 1970, having earned the rank of Sergeant, and he subsequently earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah in Medical Technology. During his life, he worked at several hospitals and clinics around the country, covering all areas of the lab, including blood bank, chemistry, microbiology, and virology. His last formal training was in molecular diagnostics using PCR in the late 90s.

Paul had three marriages before we met, the first of which produced his sons Greg and Jeff. Greg and his wife Cathy have three children, while Jeff and his wife Kristina have four children. Paul was tremendously proud of his sons’ accomplishments, and he treasured every card, call, and visit from them.

Paul and I met in 1997 while working at LDS Hospital, and it was love at first sight. We had 28 years of happiness, 11 of which were spent as a married couple. We made our home in Brigham City, and Paul was never happier than when he spent a quiet day around the house reading, listening to NPR, and watching a good documentary. He was passionate about conservation, animal welfare, and human rights, and he adhered strictly to a live and let live philosophy. He didn’t gossip, he didn’t manipulate, and he never lied. He was a gentle man of integrity, and he exuded great sweetness. To me, he was practically perfect in every way.

If you’d like to honor Paul, go to the zoo, visit an animal sanctuary, or consider giving to a charity such as the National Wildlife Federation, World Wildlife Fund, or Habitat for Humanity.

Love,

Jessica Habashi

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