Remembering former Vail Mayor Paul Johnston

Former Vail Mayor Paul Johnston, who died on Monday.

Former Vail Mayor Paul Johnston died Monday, eliciting this Facebook remembrance from his son, state Sen. Mike Johnston of Denver:

“Yesterday my father Paul Johnston went home to heaven. He was a soldier and a peace activist, a painter and an author, an art dealer and a realtor, a small town hotel and laundromat and movie theatre owner, a cowboy and a bartender, a pilot and a motocross rider, a mayor and a hospice volunteer and an ecumenical minister. Most of all he was the most gentle and generous and selfless man I have ever known.”

Paul Johnston’s daughter, Michelle Johnston Maloney, offered this on Facebook

“Our dad was so many things; he was passionate, compassionate, a servant, a friend, never expected or demanded recognition or credit. He was a visionary; not afraid to share his ideas, he loved deeply, gave freely and laughed often. He was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a brother and an uncle. I have learned so much from this man. I’m so grateful for the time we had together. Your legacy will continue through those that loved you so…..”

And the Vail Daily ran a story about Johnston’s life on Thursday.