Paul Chalmers Buford, Jr. passed away peacefully on March 6, 2023 at the age of 90, in Roanoke, Virginia. Paul was born on October 11, 1932 to Paul Chalmers Buford, Sr. and Anne Warren Buford, and grew up in Roanoke with siblings Anne, Guy, and Susan.

He spent his high school years as a cadet at Randolph-Macon Academy, going on to attend Washington & Lee University and then Randolph-Macon College, where he graduated with what he referred to as a “Degree in Persistence” in his late twenties.

After college Paul lived in Ashland, Virginia, where he enjoyed a close group of friends and held jobs ranging from car salesman to highway surveyor. His entry into the banking industry in 1960 not only set him down the path that would become a successful career for the next 3+ decades, it also introduced him to the love of his life, Frances Carroll Burnett.

After meeting that same year at a bank in downtown Richmond, Paul and Frances set out on a courtship that spanned only slightly less than his college career, marrying in Frances’ hometown of Lynchburg on January 7, 1967. The two moved back to Roanoke to the same neighborhood where Paul had grown up, where they created a life together and raised two daughters, Kate and Liz.

Paul was active in the Roanoke community, serving on the boards of the Kiwanis Club, Downtown Roanoke Inc., the Blue Ridge Independent Living Center, and the Shenandoah Club, and was also a lifelong member of Roanoke’s Second Presbyterian Church where he served as both a deacon and an elder.

Over the course of his life, Paul enjoyed many outdoor hobbies like hiking, mountain climbing, and surf fishing, and was the life of every party he attended. A health setback in his early fifties curtailed many of his favorite activities, but his razor-sharp wit and fighting spirit remained until the very end.

Paul is preceded in death by his parents, and sisters Anne Buford Berkeley and Susan Buford. Paul is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Frances Buford; daughters, Kate Eager (Bill) and Liz Hawthorne (John); brother, Guy Buford; and grandchildren Liam, Annie, Jack, and Cole Eager, and Gray Hawthorne; as well as several other family members and many dear lifelong friends.

No one will ever forget this sweet, funny, spirited, mischievous gem of a man.

A visitation will be held from 6-8pm on Sunday, March 12 at Oakey’s Downtown Chapel in Roanoke, 318 Church Avenue. A memorial service will be held at 1pm on Monday, March 13 at Second Presbyterian Church, 214 Mountain Avenue, with a reception immediately following. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Brain Injury Services of Southwest Virginia (bisswva.org) or to the charity of your choosing.