LEWISTON – N. Paul Gauvreau, 71, passed away unexpectedly in Lewiston, Maine, on April 7, 2020. Paul was born August 4, 1948, in Burlington, Vt., to Dr. Norman and Dorothy (Daniels) Gauvreau. His family moved back to Lewiston in 1952 when his father began his medical practice at St. Mary’s, just as his own father Dr. Horace Gauvreau had done. Paul graduated from Lewiston High School, the University of Maine, and the University of Maine Law School. His passion for social justice was cemented after working in Washington DC for two summers when he interned for then House Representative William Hathaway: on his first day in Washington, D.C., in 1968, Senator Robert Kennedy was assassinated. Paul met the love of his life, Evelyn Greenlaw, while a law school student and they were married in 1977. He opened a private law practice in Lewiston in 1978, and later served in the Maine State Legislature – first in the House in 1982 and then in the Senate until 1992. Paul had a great respect for the people of Lewiston, stating in an interview for the Edmund Muskie Oral History Collection Muskie Archives, “The people are wonderful. I can say this because I’ve knocked on their doors; I’ve been in their homes. They are very, very hardworking, honest, honorable people with strong values.” Paul was always concerned about giving back to his community and felt a deep calling for public service, and as a result was heavily involved in organizations such as Tri-County Mental Health Services, AWAP, Kiwanis, Community Concepts, Legal Services for the Elderly, Boys and Girls Club, Advocates for Children, the Lewiston Area Public Health Committee and many more.Paul left Legislature in 1992 to re-focus on his private law practice and spend more time with his family. In 1997, he was recruited by then Maine Attorney General Andrew Ketterer to join the AG’s Office as the Chief of the Criminal Division. He stayed with the AG’s Office in various capacities until finally retiring in 2019 (after several false attempts at retirement and milking multiple retirement parties only to come back “part time”). His colleagues describe him as putting the needs of the Office and the people of Maine above his own needs and as a true selfless, sincere and genuine human being with a wealth of knowledge, wisdom and heart. If you ever spent a moment speaking with Paul (which was likely more than a minute or two since he was so verbose), you instantly felt his warmth, as well as his passion for baseball. His knowledge of minor league prospects, Negro League players, World Series match-ups, and his forever hope of summer found in Spring Training was unmatched. Paul’s love of baseball was not focused on the athletic ability of the players. Rather, it was far more about his passion for people overcoming life’s challenges. Paul would routinely tell anyone who would listen that “in a metaphysical sense, baseball embodies our innate quest for happiness and satisfaction, even in an imperfect world.” Paul’s extensive baseball knowledge was accompanied by an equally extensive collection of baseball cards, books, scorecards, figurines, and many other memorabilia – some of which landed itself on the walls of the 6th floor of the AG’s Office when he ran out of room in his office. When asked if he was a Red Sox fan, his automatic response was “baseball is just too good to limit yourself to one team.” In addition to his passion for baseball, Paul was a self-described history nerd who loved constitutional law; two topics which he believed were indelibly intertwined. Paul enjoyed reading the complete works of the Founding Fathers nightly – and would relay important lessons or tidbits from them to his family the following morning via email. Paul’s “tidbits” were sometimes more intellectually advanced than his audience desired. To illustrate the point, the family received this email in January 2015: “I found a neat little website which allows one to discern which Founder one most closely resembles.” He boasted that his profile aligned completely with that of Benjamin Franklin. As one may have recognized during their interactions with the Gauvreau/Greenlaw family, growing up with Paul as your father/husband was certainly entertaining. Paul had a vocabulary unlike most and would constantly leave his family reaching for a dictionary. Although sometimes operating at a higher intellectual level than his family would like, it was clear how wholly and fully he loved his family. He was a loving and supportive husband and father who can never be replaced. He was predeceased by his parents. He will be sorely missed by his wife, Evelyn Greenlaw, and his daughters, Jessica, and Johanna and her significant other, Justin Smith, as well as his three siblings and their families: brother, Doug and his wife, Andrea, brother, Ken and his wife, Robin, and sister, Gayle Keeshen and her husband, Tim. Due to the current pandemic, a memorial service will be held at a later date. Should you like to leave a personal condolence for Paul’s family you may do so online at www.lynchbrothers.com

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