Wilkens, Paul William (1956-2017)

WILKENS, BISHOP, SHIPP, LEIMER, BLEVINS, TUCKER

Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 5/18/2021 at 17:36:23

Paul William Wilkens
[November 29, 1956]* - November 27, 2017

Paul William Wilkens, age 60, of Florence, Alabama, passed away on Monday, November 27, 2017, at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital in Houston, Texas.

Paul was born in Storm Lake, Buena Vista County, Iowa, to Walter and Lucille Wilkens. Baptized and confirmed at St. John’s Evangelical Reformed United Church in rural Newell, he, eventually, went on to earn a PhD at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, with a major in Agronomy, Crop Science. He, then, did postdoctoral work with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Services at Michigan State University. He earned both his Master’s Degree and his Bachelor of Science Degree at Iowa State University.

From 1993 until 2017, Dr. Wilkens worked as a Scientist Programmer with the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. During his tenure at the IFDC, he became a Co-developer of the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DDSAT) software, the principle developer of the Information and Decision Support Software, linking crop models with Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Moreover, he traveled to more than forty-seven different countries organizing and assisting with computer simulation training programs. Throughout, he touched many lives with his valuable contribution to science and technology; he leaves behind a legacy of work with the DDAST. A posting on the DDSAT website by Joyce Franzmeier-Vitzthum stated, “It’s hard to imagine a boy from a small town in Iowa had such an international impact.” Dr. Wilkens’ smiles, kindness, and humbling personality will be truly missed.

Paul’s life will always be honored and cherished by his family which includes his fiancée, Pam Bishop, of Florence, Alabama; his daughter, Emily (Kyle) Shipp, of Pensacola, Florida; his mother, Lucille Wilkens, of Albert City, Iowa; his sisters, Sharon (Mike) Leimer, of Blue Springs, Missouri, and Carol (Dan) Blevins, of Raytown, Missouri; his nephews: David Leimer, of Kansas City, Missouri, Chris (Kim) Blevins, of Kansas City, Missouri, Stephen Leimer, also of Kansas City, Missouri, and Derek Blevins, of Raytown, Missouri; his niece, Katie (Jeron) Tucker, of Overland, Missouri; his uncle, Gilbert (Sally) Wilkens, of Storm Lake; and his aunt, Wilma (Kenneth) Johnson, of Columbus, Ohio; as well as by other extended family members and many friends. Paul was preceded in death by his father, Walter Wilkens.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that a donation be made to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital, Houston, Texas, in Paul William Wilkens memory at gifts.mdanderson.org.

A Celebration of Paul’s Life will be held on December 19, 2017, at 2:00 p.m.at the Good Shepard Lutheran Church, 2001 Cloyd Blvd., Florence, Alabama 35630.

The Family of Paul William Wilkens, 2017.

* U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1. Ancestry.com.

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