Dr. Paul K. Maxwell, DDS

MAXWELL, MYERLY, EMMINGHAM, SPIOTTA, ROLAND

Posted By: Lisa Ciha (email)
Date: 3/20/2025 at 13:36:41

Dr. Paul K. Maxwell, DDS. 95, died of natural causes on March 10 at his home in Iowa City.

Funeral services will be held at First Presbyterian Church in Iowa City on March 21 with a visitation at 5:00 p.m. and services at 6:00 p.m. Refreshments will be served following the service.

Paul was born June 12, 1929 to John and Zelma (Myerly) Maxwell in Oskaloosa, Iowa. He was so small and scrawny at birth, his father told the hospital not to bother with a birth certificate, but he defied the odds and thrived for 95 years. He was raised in What Cheer, where his father was a country doctor and, where he was greatly shaped by the characters, events, and experiences of growing up in small-town Iowa during the great depression. As a child one of his jobs was ensuring the family cow was milked every morning and night. Many grandchildren over the years were informed that their childhood was not complete because they never had the unrelenting responsibility of ensuring the cow didn’t go dry. He graduated from What Cheer High School in 1947 and enrolled at the University of Iowa, working at the What Cheer Clay Products Company during the summers to help pay for tuition and … a wedding ring. While in school he joined the Air Force ROTC and, in 1953, earned a DDS degree from the UI College of Dentistry.

On June 19, 1953, he married Vera Joan (Emmingham) Maxwell in Kellogg, Idaho. They enjoyed a short honeymoon in the mountains of Idaho before he shipped out to Japan, where he was stationed at Johnson Air Force Base. He began practicing dentistry with soldiers as his first patients at the close of the Korean War. Joan joined him in Japan a few months later, and they spent their first few years of marriage site-seeing in Japan and enjoying the company of other American military couples and friends they met at the air base.

Paul left the Air Force in 1955, and he and Joan returned to Iowa, starting a dental practice in Iowa City where he served patients for 38 years. His patients admired him for being competent, patient, and kind, and many became lifelong friends. Some commented they would look forward to their dental appointments for the opportunity to catch up with him. He was active in the Iowa Dental Association and a member of the Delta Sigma Delta dental fraternity. In the 1970’s Paul took on a new role, spending two days a week working as an adjunct professor in the UI College of Dentistry. He loved working with the students and always remembered his teaching experiences fondly.

Together, Paul and Joan raised three amazingly extraordinary and handsome children (most notably the author😉) on the east side of Iowa City where they lived for over 65 years. Paul enjoyed pheasant hunting, fishing, and gardening, and he was an exceptional lifelong woodworker. After retiring from dentistry in 1993 he was able to fully focus on his passion for fine woodworking by providing doughnuts and other assistance to the owners/employees of Iowa City Cabinet & Hardwood. In his home shop he created highly artistic boxes, bowls, clocks and seemingly endless pairs of salt and pepper shakers, most of which were sold at stores and art-fairs throughout the Midwest. He became the unofficial “mayor” of the Third Avenue-Dunlap Court neighborhood, hand delivering buckets of home-grown vegetables (always with a cocker spaniel in tow) and providing assistance to neighbors with their various household projects, whether they wanted it or not.

Paul had patients and friends from all walks of life, but his highest regards were always reserved for people who were down to earth, humble, and above all else, “hard workers.” He was one of a kind and will truly be missed.
His surviving family includes his wife Joan Maxwell; his children, David Maxwell (Eileen), Anne Spiotta (Ron), Mark Maxwell (Shelly); eight grandchildren, Brian Maxwell (Melissa), Alex Maxwell (Jenny), Tim Maxwell (Melissa), Elizabeth Roland (Lou), Raymond Spiotta, Daniel Spiotta (Stephanie), Julianne Maxwell, and Charlie Maxwell (Azzurra); eleven great-grandchildren, and his brother Dr. John R. Maxwell.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. John Maxwell and Zelma (Myerly) Maxwell, of What Cheer, Iowa; and his beloved cocker spaniels, Winky-Dink, Skoshi, Satin, Max, Rusty, and Taffy.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Iowa City Hospice, or the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center.

http://www.gayandciha.com
 

Johnson Obituaries maintained by Cindy Booth Maher.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen