Paul E. Bowman

SALEM - Paul E. Bowman, 96, formerly of Columbiana and Green Township, died at a family home early Wednesday morning, surrounded by family members who had cared for him in a season of declining health.

He was born Sept. 7, 1925, on a farm in Beaver Township, Mahoning County, the son of Naomi (Shoup) and Ezra Samuel Bowman. His father died when he was seven years old. Shortly after, his mother married Irvin Bauman. Paul was reared during the Great Depression, his family moving many times for his father’s employment on area farms. He attended a number of schools, including Boardman, North Lima, Springfield, and Fairfield.

Paul served with the U.S. Army Air Force in WW II in the South Pacific. His surprise at the forgiving nature of the Japanese people that he experienced immediately after the war and then the appeal of a non-violent Christian faith turned his later life toward things that make for peace.

He married Ruth Arlene Detwiler on July 3, 1948, at the Detwiler farmstead in Beaver Township. Both were life-long members of Midway Mennonite Church, Columbiana, where he taught adult Sunday School, helped with building projects, and served with Ruth as a youth group advisor and on the church board and elder board.

He worked as a kiln-placer at the Salem China Company until the company’s demise in 1967, then at a pottery in Sebring for a time. He sold life insurance for a time, did custom hauling with his own dump truck, and used his small tractor to do custom farm pesticide application. After training, he became a soil quality and livestock health consultant with Brookside Labs of New Bremen, OH, working with many farmers in Trumbull, Mahoning, and Columbiana counties. He later drove a straight truck to pick up eggs in Holmes and Wayne counties, then delivered food service items in Columbiana, all for Landmark Foods of Columbiana. He also drove truck for Green Valley Sod Farm of Boardman then Panelmatic of Youngstown.

He and Ruth bought a farm on Middletown Road north of Greenford shortly after their marriage where they raised their children. There Paul developed a series of farm enterprises that ended up being a 100-ewe sheep herd. He and Ruth moved to Roller Road in Green Township in 1988 and to Woodland Run in Columbiana in 2007. He lived most recently at The Meadows at Covington near East Palestine.

He was an enthusiastic member of the Green Township Volunteer Fire Department for 49 years and was an early member of the department’s EMS squad. He was also Green Township Zoning Officer for a period. 

He is survived by his son, Greg (Ellen) Bowman of Greenford; and surviving daughter Lori, (Mark) Graber of Delavan IL; son-in-law John Bowman of Brookline MA; brother, Lauren Bowman, of Salem; half-brothers Raymond (Judy) Bauman of Brooklyn OH and David (Millie) Bauman of Telford, PA: grandchildren Janna, Benjamin, and Maria Bowman; Sarah and Phil Bowman; and Eli, Hannah, Paul, and Rachel Graber; and 10 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Joanne, and his wife, Ruth, who died July 30, 2021.

A memorial service is planned for 11 a.m. Saturday at Midway Mennonite Church, 13376 Columbiana-Canfield Road, Columbiana, with visitation set for 10 a.m. Officiating will be church pastor Matthew Peterson.  An outdoor remembrance service will be at the church on June 11.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be given to Midway Church or to Green Township Volunteer Fire Dept. P.O. Box 14 Greenford, Oh 44422. The family expresses appreciation to the dedicated staff at Covington Rehabilitation of East Palestine and to the caring and supportive staff of Ohio Living Hospice.

The family has entrusted Seederly-Mong & Beck Funeral Home in Columbiana, Ohio with the arrangements for their loved one.

Family and friends are invited to visit www.seederly-mongandbeck.com to sign the guestbook or send private condolences.

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