HOULTON, Maine — The town lost another of its community icons May 27 when Paul A. McGillicuddy died of natural causes. He was 102.
Funeral services were held Tuesday at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Houlton.
McGillicuddy was well known and respected in the Shiretown for his strong work ethic, caring demeanor and his devotion to family and friends.
Michael Clark of Houlton fondly recalled McGillicuddy.
“The thing about Paul, the man always has a smile on his face,” Clark said. “In anything we were involved in, he was always one who offered to help out. Whether it be the Boy and the Boot statue or raising money to build the amphitheatre, he was always willing to help. He was that kind of a friend and I looked up to him as a second father.”
McGillicuddy lived for many years with his son David in Houlton and continued to drive his own vehicle even after he turned 100. He would often drive himself to Houlton Regional Hospital, where he attended a fitness class at the Cardiac Rehab Center three times a week. In the winter months, he could be found clearing snow off other people’s cars in the parking lot.
McGillicuddy was born in Houlton, on March 16, 1913, to the late Thomas and Anna (Hogan) McGillicuddy. According to his obituary, he attended a one-room schoolhouse on the Littleton Ridge before moving into town where he was a student of St. Mary’s School. He graduated from Houlton High School after serving as president of his class and then entered the Houlton Business College.
Upon completion of his degree, he accepted his first job traveling the state as a representative for the Bay State Milling Company of Wisconsin. Four years later, he became manager of the Houlton Grange Store upon the unexpected death of his father-in-law, Byron Stewart. Within five years he was approached by Mobil officials with a proposal to assume the distributorship of gas and oil in the Houlton area.
It was then that he constructed a building on 70 Bangor St. in Houlton to house the dealership and to also sell appliances. In 1961, he opened McGillicuddy’s House of Fine Furniture, where he worked until his retirement 30 years later.
Coming from a big family, McGillicuddy was one of four boys and two girls in the McGillicuddy clan. Living just a short distance from his former family home, he enjoyed many fine years in the community.
“The town has been awfully good to me,” McGillicuddy said in a 2013 interview with the Houlton Pioneer Times. “When I hear people complaining about Houlton, they are going to hear from me. This is a good town with good people.”
He learned his strong work ethic from his father, who opened a coal and wood business.
“We all shoveled coal back in the day,” he said. “Every one of us worked.”
McGillicuddy married his high school sweetheart Pauline and the two enjoyed 61 years of marriage before she passed away in 1997 at the age of 83.
He spent several years on the board of directors for the Houlton Trust Company.
“I was on the boards of the hospital and the bank about the same number of years — 33,” he said. “Phil Tingley was the president of the Houlton Trust Company. He came to me once and he said, ‘You’re the manager of the Grange; so you know all the farmers. I’d like you on the board of the bank. You’ll have to buy some stock. It’ll be $1,000.’ I didn’t have a thousand dollars, but I borrowed the money, and it was the best thing that ever happened.”
One of Paul’s favorite business mottos has been, “Be a little early, work harder than anyone else and be there when you close down.” He is also known as the true salesman of the McGillicuddy family.
He operated a Mobil Oil business on Bangor Street and started selling appliances from that location. That business evolved into McGillicuddy Furniture, which later relocated to Water Street.
“I paid $5,000 for that building,” he recalled. “I remember going down to see Mr. Dunn of Dunn Furniture to tell him of my plans (to open a furniture store.) I remember seeing furniture trucks coming up from Bangor. I thought we (McGillicuddy Furniture and Dunn Furniture) could stop them and we did.”
McGillicuddy said his business and Dunn Furniture always had a friendly rivalry, which made for a good working relationship through the years.
“I always had good help,” he said. “That is the secret to success in business. It’s hard to find.”
Throughout his many years, Paul had been involved in a number of community-based projects. One of those projects involved helping expand Houlton’s hospital.
“I got involved in the hospital through Mother Elizabeth, a great friend of mine,” he said. “She was a terrific woman too. Smart as all get out. I was very friendly with her. I admired her abilities. I used to go up there a lot of times to see her. She was very fond of Mary too, my sister Mary. Anyway she wanted me to get on the board.”
The St. Mary’s Catholic Church has also played a prominent role in his life. He was an outstanding layman and former Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus. He was an active participant in the local Chamber of Commerce, a past president of the Lions Club, and on the Board of Directors at the Houlton Trust Company. He was also on the Board of Trustees at the Madigan Memorial and the Houlton Regional Hospital and was chosen to be an associate member of the Sisters of Mercy.
He served on the Town Budget Committee and always maintained an interest in the Houlton School System as a great supporter of its music and athletic departments. He was chosen for the Outstanding Citizen Award in 1975 and was delighted to be honored by the Rotary Club with the Paul Harris Award. He was especially proud to receive a Papal Blessing from Pope Benedict upon the occasion of his 100th birthday. McGillicuddy was keenly interested in the advancement and progress of his hometown and unselfish in participating in any activity that would make Houlton the very best community it could be. His sound judgment and foresight was always a welcome addition to any committee or project he was involved in. He was well liked and respected by all those he came in contact with.
Through it all, McGillicuddy said he has enjoyed every moment of his life.
“If I could go back (in time), I wouldn’t change a thing,” he said.
Editor’s Note: Some of the information contained in this article originates from an interview Barbara McGillicuddy Bolton of Brooklyn, N.Y. conducted with Paul, her uncle, in 2005 for a series of articles in Echoes Magazine.
