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Washington Daily News, North Carolina, Friday, 11 September 2026
Paul E. Bassett
June 28, 1937 - Sept. 5, 2026
Paul E Bassett, son of the late Edwin and Dorothy Bassettt, was born June 28, 1937, in Pittsburgh, PA., the first grandchild in a large matriarchal family. His late sister Beverly was born December, 1939, and his late brother Keith joined the family in 1947. Paul's grade school education was provided by dedicated nuns at St. Athanasius School. They tried hard, but his focus was on sports and having fun; he made the varsity baseball team at 13, not the honor roll. He played varsity football and wrestling until he was sidetracked in September 1953, when he and three other teammates found themselves hospitalized in Jonas Salk Hall of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center with polio. It was determined they were infected by the virus at football camp only weeks earlier. Fortunately, they all survived, but post polio syndrome returned with a vengeance later in Paul's life.
Paul always considered himself incredibly fortunate to be born in a time and place that supported the emerging dream of a boy with little money or family resources. It was a time when university education was affordable, allowing accomplished students the opportunity to select exciting jobs from among those offered by the best companies in this country. Ultimately he joined IBM where he had the privilege of working with some of the best and brightest people from all over the world for almost forty years. Paul graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1959 with a BS in Electrical Engineering. He joined IBM in their advanced development lab and began a Masters in E.E. at Syracuse University aided by IBM's graduate student support program. In 1962 he, his wife and four children returned to Pittsburgh to pursue a PhD in Electrical Engineering. Although offered teaching positions at the University of Notre Dame and Pitt, he accepted the offer from Bell Telephone Laboratories which was rich in opportunities.
Paul returned to IBM, to Kingston, N.Y., in 1968 where his family lived in Woodstock (1968!) until he transferred to IBM Manassas, VA. in a management position in Electronic Design Automation. IBM moved their business to Burlington, VT. in1978. There he managed a great group of software engineers pursuing very challenging electronic design automation problems. The teamwork was superior and their results were judged as far exceeding expectation. Paul retired from IBM with thirty-six plus years of service.
Whether training or running marathons, hiking the Green Mountains, or biking around Lake Champlain with Deb, he had a reverence for the natural world. Paul was a quiet supporter of Doctors Without Borders, The Smile Train, small businesses owned by women in Africa, to name just a few. He lived his life with quiet, humble, unwavering compassion. He died September 5, 2026.
Paul was predeceased by his parents, the mother of his children, Marlene, his brother
Keith, his sister Beverly and son Stephen. He is survived by his wife, Deborah; daughter Elizabeth (John) Ryan, their children Kyle and Cailyn (Joe) McMullen; son Timothy and his children Austin and Alexa; son Jeff and his daughters Lauren and Emma; Deborah's children Kate, and son Charles (Jessica), and grandson Ethan Holmes; sister-in-law Sally Bassett; brother-in-law Frank Hofmeister; nieces, nephews, cousin Neal Cready, and dear friend Omar Saiyid.
Paul was a man of great heart, mind, and soul. We are grateful for his life and for his guiding spirit which remains with us. To those of us to whom he was very near, dear, and loved, we shall miss him, we shall miss him very much.
Paul Funeral Home and Crematory of Washington is serving the Bassett family.
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Bassett Family Association Database
1937 - 2026 (89 years)