Another new series for our readers is introduced in this issue of Lifestyle: Meet Your Neighbor! Getting to know the fabric of our neighbors is part of the charm of living in Southwest Florida – and our Gateway Greens community has no shortage of great people. Get to know someone new in this first installment!
Maine is renowned for lobsters and so is one resident within Gateway Greens – Paul Maroon. Nearly every Friday night you can see him at the clubhouse enjoying a lobster roll with his partner Judy.
Paul grew up in Waterville, Maine, home to Hathaway Shirts, Colby College, and Chinet paper plates. His Lebanese Christian parents emigrated from Lebanon in the early 1900s, fleeing Ottoman rule. Like other immigrants, they worked in the textile mills as spinners, weavers, and packers. They raised eight children on a meager salary and tons of love. Lebanese food, lobsters, family fun, sports, and altar boy service consumed the life of him and his identical twin brother Peter. Senator George Mitchell was their playmate.
After high school he joined the Navy during the Korean War. He worked in radar on a destroyer and was the social chairman. Enlistment gave him a wonderful experience as he traveled to Europe twice and northern Africa, learning valuable leadership skills along the way. After service, Paul graduated with a business major from Husson University in Bangor and founded and operated Paul Maroon Floor and Wall Coverings with his wife for 30+ years.
Maroon could no longer withstand the long winters, so 30 years ago he and his wife Mary moved to North Fort Myers. They were married 54 years before her passing in 2012. He and his son Stephen relocated to the Cypress Links neighborhood within Gateway Greens four years ago and love it. Paul enjoys playing bocce ball, Euchre, dining, cooking, and swimming – and does ALL of that at the youthful age of 93½! He loves sports and excelled in baseball, football, and basketball in high school. Paul rarely misses a Red Sox or New England Patriots game – in fact, he even has a season ticket behind home plate at JetBlue Park! He is a member of St. John XXIII Catholic Church and helps raise money for local charities in the Knights of Columbus.
Community service was a major component of his life. He served in several leadership positions in local government and organizations in Maine and Florida. Paul started Little League and high school ice hockey in Winslow, Maine where he is honored annually with a booster award in his name. Maroon was also president of the Exchange Club and town planning office. In North Fort Myers, he developed the veteran’s memorial park and led the effort to convert his home community to a co-op. The property value tripled to more than $90 million in ten years! Next time you have dinner at the clubhouse on a Friday night, stop by and say hello to the still very busy guy who is enjoying his lobster
