Paul Edward Handrahan

Paul was born in Pierre, SD. He attended elementary school at Plainview and Longvalley, high school at Kadoka, and college at BHSU in Spearfish.
Family was Paul’s main priority. When he was 8, his hero and the Dad he always wanted, Raymond Terkildsen came into his life and married Frances. Paul moved with the family to the Terkildsen Ranch, the scene of lots of adventures and learning everything from hard work farming and ranching, helping build the family home to swimming and skiing at LaCreek with the VanderMay cousins and playing poker and pitch through blizzards. A toboggan provided lots of entertainment until it’s final brutal crash.   Throughout Paul’s life, Raymond was his mentor and role model. 
After attending college at BHSU in Spearfish, Paul moved to Oklahoma and began working at Great Plains tire. He enjoyed dancing and met the beautiful Tammy Kieth. The couple had many happy years together raising their children, Junior (Stanley) Kieth, Waylon Kieth, and Kristina Kieth. He was inspired to write his song “Trying to get to K-Mart on My Lunch Hour”. He later began working for Bar-S, where he worked until his death. Paul’s children and grandchildren were the light of his life and he was proud to share lots of stories of their many accomplishments and adventures. His Grandchildren were the inspiration for his song, “Maybe”. Throughout the last couple years as his health challenges grew, his children and grandchildren provided a great deal of support and comfort, taking him to appointments and helping him maintain his home and large yard.
Paul loved the ocean and could gaze out over it for hours. The first time he saw the ocean, he waded right out in the tide in his boots and just stood in silent awe. On a subsequent cruise he would stand and look out over the railing for hours. He also auditioned for Voice of the Ocean singing competition, and although he didn’t win, he gained celebrity status as “Mr. Paul” and had lots of fans on board.
Paul was a great listener and despite the distance, kept in close touch with his family through phone calls. He was always just a phone call away with infinite patience to listen.
Paul was a big fan of old country music and was a wealth of knowledge on country music trivia. He enjoyed writing and singing his own music. He taught himself to play the guitar and for many years would play and sing at the family reunion. Later he would play at the VA Hospital, and 2 Care Centers in Clinton; He enjoyed the smiles and happiness from the veterans and elderly and the difference he could make in their lives.   He always got a kick out of people making song requests. He was able to play a few times for his mother and friends at the Kadoka Care Center and at the end of her life, Frances liked to fall asleep at night listening to his CDs. One of her favorite songs was a tribute Paul wrote to her, titled “My Brother’s Wife’s Mother-In-Law.   This play on words was indicative of his trademark wit and humor.  He had a unique way of looking at life. During his last visit to South Dakota in June, his Uncle Bill Bruce requested he play and sing a song for Aunt Polly titled “Hollyhocks and Yellow Roses”. Paul wrote the song inspired by Grandma Elizabeth Nemec’s garden. Then, before they left, Bill and Polly requested he play it one last time. 
Paul is survived by his children, Junior (Stanley)  and Amy Kieth, Waylon and Mary Kieth, and Kristina Kieth and John, grandchildren, great grandchildren,  his siblings Joe Handrahan and Gail, Aletta Salganek, Rock Terkildsen, Grant and Kathy Terkildsen, William and Naomi Terkildsen, and Barb Dundas. He also considered Suzanne VanderMay more of a sibling than a cousin and would always end his visits by going by to say adios and get a hug. He leaves behind numerous Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Nieces, Nephews, and friends who remember him fondly and will miss him greatly. 
In Paul’s song, “The Dash,”  he discusses the irony that the tiny symbol on a gravestone between the date of birth and the date of death represents an entire lifetime. A lifetime full of childhood adventures, work, and family.
Paul died peacefully in his home…with his boots on. Just as he would have wanted.
His ashes will be scattered at the beloved Terkildsen Ranch along with hollyhocks and a yellow rose planted in honor of Uncle Picklefork, nicknamed as such by his niece Shiloh Terkildsen.
A memorial service will be held at the Kadoka City Annex, October 21, 2023 at 10:30 AM, lunch to follow. Come share a memory of Paul, or bring a guitar and sing a song.