Paul van Uchelen 2025

 Dr. Paul A. van Uchelen, a physician and well-respected member of the McMinnville community, passed away peacefully at the age of 100, surrounded by family and friends, on December 7, 2025.

Paul was born in Bukittinggi, Sumatra Indonesia, which was part of the Dutch East Indies at that time. His youth was cut short when he was imprisoned by the Imperial Japanese Army during WWII. Although he was only 16 when captured, he exaggerated his age with the intent of being assigned to the same POW camp as his brother and father. The Japanese-run prison camps were particularly brutal: torture, beatings, hard labor, and starvation took their toll. Paul’s father died in the camp, and his brother never recovered. Understandably, Paul carried the legacy of this experience for the rest of his life.

After the war, Paul was repatriated to Holland, where he realized he wanted to help people heal but he needed training to do so. Medicine became his calling, and he entered the field in which he could use his analytical skills and honor his love of learning. He began his training at the Dutch Royal Naval Academy, and completed his medical degree and internship at the Amsterdam University Medical School.

While in Amsterdam, Paul also reunited with Anneke, whom he knew from his childhood in Indonesia. Paul’s grandfather then presided over a most somber wedding ceremony (the story of which his sons heard about for years to come). Paul and Anneke lived in Hilversum, Holland, and then immigrated to Canada after their first son, Arthur, was born. They wanted to raise their child in an environment with fewer people and more access to wilderness and mountains (which Holland did not have). While in Canada, Paul completed additional medical training, fathered his second son, Collin, and worked hard to support his growing family – including sharing his lunches and left-overs from the hospital to help put some extra food on the table.

Paul then moved the family to the United States so he could pursue specialty training in Internal Medicine. He completed his residency in Portland, Oregon, where he fathered his third son, Mark. Finally, he settled in McMinnville, Oregon, where he fell in love with the small community, friendly people, and beautiful landscape. He started at Physicians Medical Center and later opened his own medical practice. It was very rewarding to him, and his patients appreciated his care for their well-being, no-nonsense demeanor, and quick-witted sense of humor.

Eventually, he retired, but retirement did not sit well with him: He began practicing as a locum physician where he filled in for doctors all over the country. During the Gulf War, he was stationed at Dwight Eisenhower Medical Center with the U.S. Army. He enjoyed his service with the military in both Holland and America. He had an exemplary medical career, from being the first specialist in Internal Medicine in McMinnville to keeping all his medical licenses active into his 90s.  His focused motivation enabled him to be one of the oldest living physicians in Oregon.

In addition to his medical practice, Paul also loved sailing on the Columbia River, where he spent many weekends and summer vacations with family and friends. He also liked preparing the land for planting trees at his hobby farm, where he worked with his sons to restore acres of forest for all to enjoy.

Over his life, Paul belonged to the Dutch Reformed Church, the First United Presbyterian Church and, finally, the Seventh-day Adventist Church in McMinnville. Faith was a bond between Paul and his wife Anneke, with which they sustained a marriage for 66 years until Anneke passed away earlier in 2025. Paul is survived by brother-in-law, Jan L. Slikkerveer (Mady); three sons, Arthur (Corrine), Collin (Michelle), and Mark (Suzi); and grandson, Bennett.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, February 21, 2026, at the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 1500 S.W. Old Sheridan Road, McMinnville, Oregon 97128.