VANDERMYDE, Paul A. 1937-2000
VANDERMYDE
Posted By: K. Kittleson
Date: 8/25/2009 at 22:52:31
Paul A. VanderMyde was the son of Louis and Ann VanderMyde of St. Ansgar, Iowa. His father was, for about 30 years, the manager of the Cedar Valley Electric Co-operative.
Paul was born at Estherville, Iowa, on February 9, 1937 and moved to St. Ansgar, Iowa at a young age. He attended St. Ansgar public schools, and graduated from St. Ansgar High School in 1955. Following high school, Paul attended the University of Minnesota and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1959. He later attended the University of Iowa and obtained a Master of Arts degree on February 5, 1966 at Iowa City.
Outside of his educational activities, Paul served as a commander in the United States Naval Reserve from 1959 to 1961. According to the Waterloo Daily Courier for August 25, 1958, Paul had just returned from an NROTC Pacific Cruise, and was visiting his parents in St. Ansgar.
Following graduation from the University of Minnesota he spent two years in Washington as a Naval Intelligence officer with the Potomac River Naval Command.
From 1962-1968 he was a staff assistant with the National Security Agency, in Washington D.C.
He was a congressional fellow with Representative George H. W. Bush (R-Texas) and Senator Bob Packwood (R-Oregon) during 1968-1969. He then served as legislative assistant to Senator Bob Packwood from 1969 to 1971.
Between 1973 and 1977 he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Agriculture. Mr. Vander Myde was also a staff member at the White House during the time period of 1973-1977.
As an example of his work, in 1976 Mr. Vander Myde, while serving as Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Department of Agriculture, was the contact person at the Department of Agriculture for the various program managers involved with the Combined Forest Pest Research and Development Program.
After 1977 Vander Myde served as Republican staff director, for the Committee on Science and Technology, U.S. House of Representatives.
On March 3, 1981 President Ronald Reagan announced his intention to nominate Paul A. Vander Myde to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce -- for Congressional Affairs. In connection with that, in the Washington Post, on March 4, 1981, Bill Peterson said, "The Commerce Department came up with two appointments. Paul A. Vander Myde, minority staff director on the House Science & Technology Committee since 1977, was named assistant secretary for congressional affairs. Vander Myde, 44, was a White House staffer during the Nixon years, and served as a congressional fellow with then-representative George [H.W.] Bush...."
Years later, Paul worked for VSE Corporation, which did work on various defense projects.
Paul Vander Myde died on June 13, 2000. Supposedly he committed suicide following his being stopped by a policeman for making an illegal left turn. A report found on the internet says the following: "Vander Myde, 63, told his wife he was heading to work at VSE Corp. but never arrived. About 9 a.m., a Fairfax County police officer pulled Vander Myde over for making an illegal left turn. Before the officer could approach his car, Vander Myde shot himself in the head, police said. Cochran said that Vander Myde's back had been hurting and that he hadn't seen his friend in a few weeks. "It was quite a shock that, we guess, he had become so depressed over his condition." Craig Weber, another senior vice president, said that he had worked closely with Vander Myde and that everything "seemed fine."
It should be noted that Paul's wife was named Jeanne. Following his death Jeanne married Senator John W. Warner of Virginia.
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