Paul Jarboe was a brother of mine as only those of us who grew up together in the same era, same close circle, same East Central Illinois environment can claim. He and his brother Jackson appeared in Champaign at Jefferson Medium Security Prison (Junior High) sometime in 1968 or so after their family came in from the Mahomet area. Paul made an immediate impression on all of us at that time because he happened to draw the post polio card in life that forced him to pull a bum leg alongside the good one. As much as it likely bothered him physically, I never heard him complain about it. We all had classes together and I knew him as a friend pretty much from that point on and by the time all of us entered Centennial High School I'd made the decision to pretty much socially join the CCHS class of 1973 gang. Paul was right there with us for all of it, hanging out mostly during this period alongside his buddy and fellow short order cook Jerry O'Hara and many others. One of the other posts in this tribute stated that Paul was always willing to listen and to advise people when they were confronting their own challenges or surfing rough waters. This is true, but in the end, Paul's advice was generally to face tough times head on and keep moving. He was enormously proud of his son Gabe, often suffering the long absences from him that drove Paul to the point of open emotion on several occasions particularly while he was living in Minnesota and would have to travel long distances to stay in contact. His return to Champaign was a happy moment for a lot of his friends because Paul had an open door policy and was always available to catch a beer or hang out with those friends that he cared for and valued. Now that he is gone and out of pain, those of us who are left can likely say that we took his presence in our lives sometimes for granted. This is unfortunate as we are now going to be left with memory alone to cover any gaps in the years ahead. I think it safe to say that Paul made an indelible mark on the lives of those he met and cared for and that the old Paul, full of life and humor, will be sadly missed. My sincere condolences to the Jarboe family and particularly to Jackson and gang.
