Paul Joseph Della, 65, of Vancouver, died at his home after battling cancer.

Born March 21, 1961, in Portland, Oregon, Paul was the oldest of Angelo and Marie Della’s four children. Paul and his siblings, David, Theresa (McDougal) and Phil, were raised in Vancouver, WA, by their father, a high school teacher and their mother, a nurse.

Paul attended Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, Central Catholic, and graduated from Columbia River High School in 1979. He attended the University of Portland and graduated with a degree in electrical engineering in 1984. He later earned a master’s in business administration, also from the University of Portland.

Throughout college, Paul interned at the Bonneville Power Administration, and after college, he began his career in Medford, Oregon, as an electrical engineer for Pacific Power. Over the years with Pacific Power, he transferred to Albany and Portland before accepting positions at Vestas Wind Technologies, Zero Kar Technologies and McLaren Inc.

Paul spent many years volunteering his time selling Christmas trees to support L’Arche Nahalem House. He also very much enjoyed singing in the Saint Joseph Catholic Church Choir. In recent years, he worked for Fred Meyer.

Paul especially loved whitewater rafting, space exploration science, researching family history, huckleberry picking on Mount Adams and visiting with family and friends. He was a faithful Catholic.

A funeral Mass will be held on September 24 at 10 a.m. in the Proto-Cathedral of Saint James with a Rosary at 9:20 a.m.