On September 14, 2024, Paul Edward Pawlisch of Chetek passed away at the age of 93. He is survived by his loving wife, Helen Joyce Pawlisch (nee Reinfeldt), and their son Curt Pawlisch (Robin Carlson) of Madison, and two grandchildren, Zoe Pawlisch (Benjamin McKinney) of Madison, and Tess Pawlisch of New York City. He is predeceased by his parents Otto and Anna, and two brothers Carl and Jim Pawlisch.

Paul served in the infantry in the Korean War from 1951-53, participating in its worst battles including the struggles for Triangle Hill and Pork Chop Hill. At one point he needed to play dead when the Chinese Army overran their positions until forced to retreat.

Paul and Helen were married on October 16, 1954, in St. Luke’s Church in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, their hometown. Paul subsequently earned a Ph.D in Agriculture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Texas A&M hired Paul in 1959. He was especially proud of having bred a type of oats that was widely planted in Brazil, a country with a climate similar to eastern Texas.

In 1964 he moved his family back to his beloved Wisconsin where he served as Executive Director for the Malting Barley Improvement Association in Milwaukee. There, using the contributions of the nation’s leading malt companies and breweries, he granted money to universities throughout the country to breed improved strains of barley.

In 1994, he and Helen moved from their 30-year home in Whitefish Bay to their new home on Lake Pokegma in Chetek, building on land purchased by his parents in 1945.

Paul loved to hunt and fish, a joy he shared with his son. He long remembered hunting squirrels as a boy in the Big Hills of Sauk County and his early trips to Chetek bass fishing with his father. While he loved to fish area rivers for smallmouth bass, he long lamented the collapse of the walleye population on Chetek lakes since the heydays of the 1960s. Accordingly, Paul was instrumental in helping to create Walleyes for Chetek, an organization that has stocked thousands of walleyes in the Chetek Chain of Lakes.

A Private Family and Friends Funeral Service will be held.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to Walleyes for Chetek, https://www.facebook.com/WalleyesForChetek/.

The Burnham-Ours-Kolstad Family Funeral Home was entrusted with arrangements.

Last Update: Sep 17, 2024 1:27 pm CDT