It is with sorrow that we report the death of Dr. Paul Wienir, z"l, on January 15, 2026. Paul and his wife, Linda Wienir, were married for 58 years. They were active members of the Kalamazoo Jewish community for 45 years, starting in the early 1970s. Paul served as a member of the Board of Directors in the 1980s and Linda was Sisterhood President. Their son, Gabe Taraday (Wienir), attended CoM's Religious School; he became a Bar Mitzvah in 1992 and graduated from high school in 1997. Paul and Linda moved in 2018 to the Washington, DC area to live closer to Gabe, their daughter-in-law and granddaughter.

Paul was born in 1942 in Seattle. He grew up near the University of Washington, where he got his Bachelor's Degree. While getting a PhD in Sociology in Chapel Hill, NC, he met Linda Taraday. Paul became Professor Wienir at WMU in the early 1970s, where he prioritized his Sociology students above conducting research - memorizing his students' names early each semester. He taught there until retiring in 2006.

For much of his life, Paul was a long-distance runner, completing a marathon in the 1980s. He enjoyed attending many college and professional sports games, especially at Lawson Ice Arena and Tigers Stadium. In addition to his WMU and Jewish community-centered activities, Paul was the primary cook of his family, especially relishing sandwiches and salads where he would throw everything in, decades before it was popular - somehow every taste would compliment each other.

Paul also was the main caregiver for Linda for most of the 42 years after she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Paul's own health scare came in 1991; as he rode back from Mayo Clinic, he was so high on Prednisone that in the back seat he composed and sang his diagnosis to the tune of Dayeinu!

In his final week, Paul had been in the hospital with a cold that led to pneumonia. A local rabbi led the family in prayer while Paul was still conscious. He went peacefully a couple hours later, holding his wife’s hand. The funeral service was held graveside in Falls Church, VA on January 18.

Please feel free to reach out to Linda Wienir at owlblinda@gmail.com and Gabe Taraday at dcgabe@gmail.com.

(Prepared by Gabe Taraday at the request of CoM members)