University of New England

Obituary:
Paul Douglas (P.D.) Merrill
   
PORTLAND - Paul Douglas (P.D.) Merrill of Yarmouth died unexpectedly of a heart attack at his home on Feb. 11, 2007.

P.D. was born in Portland on March 10, 1944, the son of Paul Emery Merrill and Virginia Sweetser Merrill. He attended Portland schools and graduated from Hebron Academy. He attended Webber College and the University of Minnesota. In 1990, P.D. married Sandi Goolden. Their young son Ethan played an important role at the time of death in administering aid and calling the rescue service.
    
After working in Minnesota, Conn. and Boston, P.D. returned to Maine to work in the family businesses, Merrill Transport Company and Merrill Industries, in 1979. His first challenge was the Merrill's Marine Terminal, which faced seemingly insurmountable geological problems during construction. The business challenges he faced and overcame did not diminish thereafter.
    
After the death of his father in 1982, P.D. charted the future course of the companies and saw the Marine Terminal grow to be the largest dry freight marine terminal in the state, handling newsprint, wood pulp, coal, salt and scrap metal in shipments to and from Newfoundland, Sweden, China, Thailand, Chile and Egypt and other distant ports. Major newspapers throughout the northeast, including the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, New York Times and Wall Street Journal, were printed on newsprint shipped through this terminal. Visitors marveled at the stores of tapioca that were imported from the Far East in one ton bags.
    
P.D. is well known for his business acumen, but less known for the experiences that provided the underlying foundation of his success. A pivotal event early in his life was when he and his sister Sally traveled to Washington, D.C., to hear Dr. Martin Luther King deliver his I Have A Dream speech. P.D. took that inspiration and answered the call to serve those less fortunate. He spent two years in Leslie County, Kentucky as an Appalachian Volunteer. The most tangible result of that effort was a new school building.
    
At the University of Minnesota his attention turned to the cooperative movement. He managed a student dining cooperative and headed up the development of new cooperative housing. He became a firm believer in people's ability to own and control their housing for the good of the group. He helped organize student cooperatives at other colleges. This work led him to Technicoop, an international developer of housing co-ops based in Connecticut. His work with Technicoop included development and managing cooperative apartments throughout the United States. He was able to fuse idealism with practical business practices into the kind-hearted no nonsense approach that became his reputation
    
His next challenge was to see if his approach could bring results to a large and unwieldy bureaucracy. He served as a senior management official at the Boston Housing Authority at a time when the Authority was under court supervision following a long failure to meet health and building codes. His work was successful, gaining written commendation from Judge Garrity.
    
P.D. brought this spirit to not only his business life, but also to many philanthropic efforts. When Camp Agawam in Raymond faced a doubtful future, P.D. stepped in to help create a non-profit organization to preserve those opportunities, especially for those Maine boys who could not otherwise afford to attend a summer camp.
    
From 1984 until his death, he served as a trustee of University of New England, including five years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees. He led strategic planning and new building projects and oversaw the merger of UNE with Westbrook College. In recognition of his service, the University awarded him an honorary Doctor of Laws Degree in 2000. In 2004, P.D. transferred active management of the Marine Terminal to Sprague Energy, in order to have more time with his family which was the center of his life.
    
P.D. leaves behind his loving family and many dear friends. He is survived by his wife, Sandi Goolden; and son Ethan Merrill of Yarmouth; sister Sally Merrill of Cumberland Center; brother Peter Merrill and his wife Leslie of Portland; sister Martha Merrill of New York City; sister-in-law Barbara Lambach of South Portland; nephew John Merrill of Richmond, Va.; and niece Becky Merrill of Boston. He is also survived by his wife's parents, Lee and Carole Goolden of Venice, Fla.; and his in-laws Mike and Pam Goolden and their children, CJ, Joe and Sarah of Fairfield, Conn.
    
Visiting hours will be held at Jones Rich & Hutchins Funeral Home, 199 Woodford St., Portland, on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2007, from 3 to 7 p.m. A Celebration of Life will be held on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2007, at 2:30 p.m., at First Parish Congregational Church, Yarmouth, with the Rev. Meg Queior, the Rev. Gayle Collins-Ranadive and the Rev. Carra Bradt officiating. Interment will be private. Those wishing to send a tribute in Paul D. Merrill's memory may do so www.mem.com.

In lieu of flowers, donations in P.D.'s name may be made to:
The University of New England
11 Hill's Beach Road
Biddeford, Maine 04005

or to:

The First Universalist Church of Yarmouth's Steeple Fund
97 Main Street
Yarmouth, Maine 04096

Paul D. Merrill: A UNE Profile