EVERETT — If you were in line at the grocery store and only picking up a few things, Paul Yusaf would always let you go in front of him.
A devout Christian, he was like that with everything.
He died May 18 following a short fight with brain cancer. He was 50 years old.
Esther Y
usaf first met her husband not long before their arranged marriage in Lahor, Pakistan.
She described him as a happy man with a kind smile on his face.
They married in 1994 and Esther followed him to Everett three years later.
They had two daughters Ruth, 13, and Merab, 8, and a close-knit and loving extended family.
Friends and family described Paul as kind, friendly and God-fearing.
He was named after the apostle Paul. His father, the Rev. Nazir Yusaf, was a pastor. Paul studied arts and education in Pakistan and helped manage and teach at the Christian school his family owned.
Esther’s master’s degree in chemistry allowed her to teach at a Christian school in Pakistan as well. She runs a day-care center in Everett.
People respected and admired Paul for his hard work and positive attitude. He worked at a Cash & Carry store in south Everett and was loved by his co-workers and customers.
“He was a hard worker, but along with his work he liked to talk to people,” Esther said about her husband.
Paul reached out to people through his faith. He liked to sing “Amazing Grace” with a co-worker over lunch break.
Paul’s illness was quick and unexpected. A healthy man, he complained of dizziness in December. Doctors found a tumor in his brain several weeks later. Doctors told the family that cancer had been lurking in Paul’s body until it was too late. In January, Paul went into a coma and never woke up. Family and friends spent a lot of time with him in the hospital.
Ken Rushane of Snohomish was one of his frequent visitors. The two met at the store where Paul worked and became friends.
When Rushane forgot his wallet at home one day, Paul paid for his groceries without a second thought. He knew Rushane would pay him back.
“Paul was a very good man and a very trusting man,” Rushane said. “This meant so much to me.”
He said he was grateful to get to know Paul’s family while visiting him in the hospital.
Paul was growing closer to God in the last few months of his life, though he didn’t know the end was near, Esther said. He started a kind of ministry to share his faith and love for God with those around him.
Paul liked to be with family and always helped Esther around the house. He liked to sing as he went about his chores.
“He was nice and funny, and very generous to people,” said Ruth, the couple’s eldest daughter.
Katya Yefimova: 425-339-3452; kyefimova@heraldnet.com.
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