Donald Cleveland

7/25/1938 — 2/23/2024

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Early morning Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, heaven gained another old Marine to guard its gates. Living his life as a true mountain man, Donald Paul Cleveland was born July 25, 1938, in Gifford to Don and Nell Cleveland. He was raised in a place called Hollywood, between Pierce and Headquarters. He grew up living a life full of hunting, fishing, tinkering and fixing anything with a motor. Paul graduated from high school in Pierce in 1956.

A proud U.S. Marine and American, Paul served from 1957-1959 in Twentynine Palms, Calif. He drove a fuel truck and worked on machinery. He met Bonnie “June” Younglove while enlisted and they were married Oct. 1, 1959, moved back to Headquarters and started their new life together raising two sons, Bradley Paul and Brian Paul.

Paul spent his working life with a couple of small logging operations and worked for Potlatch Corp., as a heavy machine operator. During one of his logging stints while working for Potlatch, he and his best friend, Wendell Stark, orchestrated the epic “Bigfoot Prank” along Township Saddle, almost shutting down a complete logging operation for investigation.

He was a smart ass, a hard ass and very stoic, but underneath his big and rough exterior, he was a funny and kindhearted man. Paul was the definition of letting his children and grandchildren just “figure it out.” He taught us life skills and lessons in everything he did. We have countless memories of four wheeler rides all over his beloved Idaho wilderness. The routes we rode (still to this day) were the many skid roads that he had made in his logging days.

The memories and adventures were far too many to count. Headquarters will always be a special place to Paul’s entire family. It’s comforting to know he’s now up there sitting under his apple trees, feeding the deer and drinking a cold beer with his loved ones.

Ol’ Pollywog, you are greatly missed. Semper Fi, OoRah.

Paul is preceded in death by his parents, Don and Nell Cleveland, siblings, Joanne (Bobby) Ritchel and Timothy Cleveland. He is survived by his wife, June Cleveland, sons, Brad (Cheri) Cleveland and Brian (Cori) Cleveland and families: Matt (Jody) Cleveland, son Bentley; Stevi (Adam) Willows, son Carter; Cheyenne (Peter) Gregg, daughter Emerson, son Milo; Zayne (Josh) Storey, daughters, Paisley and Parker and two nieces, Linda and Vicky.

A private service will be held at a later date.

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