Paul Vilja, 91, of Kapaa passed away at home on December 23, 2019. He was born inside of a sauna in Nuijamaa, Finland on September 4, 1928 and retired as a Construction Superintendent at Pozzo Construction, Inc.
In his late twenties he moved to Canada where he was a lumberjack and bear hunter. After several years he moved to California then Washington before finally settling down on Kauai in late 1996. He was a proud Finnish man who found great pride and joy in building banks and hospitals and later became a prize winning wood carver known on Kauai for his life-like coconut carvings.
He is preceded in death by his parents Aapeli and Iida Viljakainen and eight siblings.
Paul is survived by his brother, Leo Viljakainen; sons, Paul Vilja Sr. and Jussi Vilja; daughter, Liisa Vandermeer; grandchildren, Nicholas (Diane Sater) Vandermeer, Jeanẽe Vilja and Justin (Jasmine) Vandermeer and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
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