Paul W. Baumhover, age 56, son of Virgil and Mary Baumhover, passed away on Monday, April 7, 2025, at St. Anthony Nursing Home in Carroll.
A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, May 30, 2025, at Holy Spirit Church – St. John Paul II Parish in Carroll with burial in Mt. Olivet Cemetery.
A visitation is from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, May 29, 2025, at the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll with a Rosary at 7 p.m. Additional visitation will be from 9:30-10:15 a.m. on Friday, May 30, 2025 prior to the Funeral Mass. Funeral arrangements are under the guidance of the Sharp Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for Paul’s family at www.sharpfuneral.com.
Paul Baumhover had a very good life. He enjoyed his family and friends to the max with great energy and a joyful, ornery spirit. He was stubborn and some would say spoiled as the youngest of the seven children of Virgil and Mary (Maher) Baumhover of Carroll. Paul was born on May 3, 1968 with Downs Syndrome, a mental retardation condition of people who are usually able to walk and talk and learn and who have happy personalities. Although met with initial sadness at Paul’s disability, his family was soon too busy preventing his antics to be sad. He was slow to walk, but when he did, soon started running away and jumping into the nearby Legion Swimming Pool where one of his babysitters was a lifeguard and rescued him. He climbed fences, snuck into a small trailer in the middle of winter and had his stomach pumped a few times after gobbling down a family member’s pills. His mother often wondered who was handicapped – Paul or herself trying to keep up with him.
His siblings taught him to joke and tease and live a normal life. They challenged him in his development and encouraged his independence. All of them were involved with Paul and his friends when he was young and they supported and worked in Special Education summer camps and other programs. Paul’s energetic spirit inspired several of his siblings and babysitters to take on careers and volunteer projects in the Special Needs field.
Paul was born in the era before Special Education was an official part of public education or before very many services were available. Through the efforts of families, Grant No. 5 school in rural Carroll, a classroom in Manning and one in the Carroll School district were the first in Carroll County available for Special Needs children. When he was three, Paul’s family joined a group of parents and concerned citizens to start a Pre-School for the Handicapped under the Area Education Agency. In the 1970s Special Education was mandated by Federal Law.
Paul kept his classrooms lively at Carroll Public Schools. He attended high school at Comprehensive Systems in Charles City where he lived until he was eighteen and then moved to Evergreen Cottage on the New Hope Village campus. He later lived in New Hope community homes in Carroll.
Paul received excellent care at New Hope for nearly forty years. Paul’s older sister, Lisa, who had a seizure disorder also lived at New Hope for several years.
Through New Hopes’s Work Activity programs, Paul was able to earn spending money in various supervised jobs. He enjoyed all of the New Hope events, dances, parties, and had three girlfriends at the same time. He was part of a Men’s Bowling team at the Carroll Bowling Alley for several years. He was able to go on a Disney Cruise and visited the home of his idol, Elvis Presley. He participated in Special Olympics for several years and in a horseback riding program. Paul enjoyed the many friends that he had met in his pre-school years and in the community.
The Baumhover family gives thanks to the well-trained, caring New Hope staff who helped Paul and Lisa learn appropriate behavior, social, personal and work-ethic skills and to have respect for the staff members who guided and treated them with dignity and respect. Paul and Lisa learned to be their own people and enjoy life in every way.
In May of 2024, Paul moved to the Memory Care Unit of St. Anthony Nursing Home where he was given excellent, kind and compassionate care to meet his challenging dementia needs. The staff provided a pleasant, comfortable atmosphere of patience, daily activities and respect for the dignity of each individual, and Paul was able to be his ornery self and enjoy his last year.
Paul is survived by his parents, Virgil and Mary Baumhover of Carroll, his siblings, Laura (Greg) Stevens, Tacoma, WA; Joe Baumhover, Riverside, IA; Amy (Lee) Weber, Lisbon, IA; Carol (Todd) O’Donnell, DeSota, MO and Sara (John W.) Smith, Cedar Falls, IA. He had many aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Lisa Baumhover in 1994, his grandparents, Martin and Neda Maher of Carroll and Joe and Nellie Baumhover of Carroll.
