Paul N. Kuehnel , 69, passed away on Monday, June 21, 2021, in Boulder, CO with family by his side.

Paul Norman Kuehnel was born on September 25, 1951, in Grand Forks, ND, at the original St. Michaels Hospital, the son of Norman and Alice (Helle) Kuehnel.  Paul was the third born of nine children. He grew up and attended school in Thompson, ND. Paul was baptized into the Catholic faith at St. Jude's Catholic Church in Thompson.

He moved to Colorado in 1968, where he settled in Boulder. Paul met Janet Grassia in Boulder in the 1970's.  They have been together for 46 years and Janet was the love of his life.  Paul stood for many things in life.  He was proud to be a blue-color worker. When he arrived in Boulder, he convinced a local contractor to hire him. He framed townhomes and custom houses in Boulder. He joined the Carpenters Union and became a Journeyman. He worked on big construction projects, including several skyscrapers in Denver, CO and the Budweiser Brewery in Fort Collins, CO.  In his later working life, he was a custodian and food service worker on campus at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

Paul bought his first motorcycle as a teenager and rode all his life. In the 1990's, he won trophies for ice racing old British bikes for Harry's Roamers, a club in Colorado Springs, CO.   Every other day, he would take one of his Harleys out for a spin. His garage was his palace.  Paul learned to love the out-of-doors from his uncle, Art Helle. Every summer, he camped and fly-fished in the high country in the Wind River Wilderness of Wyoming and in the Indian Peaks of Colorado.  He joined the Boulder Fish and Game Club and was its President for many years.  He worked with biologists from the Department of Parks and Wildlife to maintain the club's trout rearing units and to stock high-country lakes with fry.  For many years, Paul organized and hosted the annual kid's fishing derby in May at the Evert Pierson Kids Fishing Pond in Boulder. When he couldn't be fishing, he would go out for a run on the trails through Boulders open space.

Paul will forever be missed.

Paul is survived by, Janet Grassia of Boulder, CO; brothers, James of Simi Valley, CA, Richard of Elizabethton, TN; sisters, Mary Kuehnel of Burlington, IA, Catherine Freeman (Joseph Sr.) of Grand Forks, ND; a, sister-in-law, DeLaine ( Mrs.Steven) Kuehnel of Denver, CO and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.

Paul was preceded in death by his parents; his grandparents; his brothers, Steven and Norman "Rob" Jr.  and John; a sister, Therese Kuehnel; a nephew, Joseph Freeman, Jr. and several aunts, uncles and a cousin, Carol Helle.

Funeral Liturgy: 1:30 p.m. Thursday July 8, 2021, in the Historic Norman Funeral Home Chapel.
Visitation: One hour prior to the liturgy in the funeral home on Thursday.
Burial: St. Jude's Catholic Cemetery in Thompson, ND.