Paul Edward Stephens

Paul Edward Stephens was born January 23, 1937 to Willie and Texie Stephens in Logan County, West Virginia. Paul and his siblings grew up very modestly in the years following the Great Depression. His father, a coal miner, died in an accident when Paul was still a child. Paul passed from this earth on July 10, 2026 after a long illness.

After graduating from Logan High School, he moved to Charleston, WV and put himself through Capitol City Commercial College to learn accounting and business management taking nighttime janitorial jobs and washing dishes at Rose City Cafeteria, among others. In the summer, he hitchhiked to Columbus, OH for a job building a golf course. While attending the business school, Paul learned the fine art of penmanship which he practiced with great care all of his adult life.

His first work as a bookkeeper was with Childers Chevrolet in Nitro, WV. With the love of his life, Goldie Dell Baldwin, he soon moved to Hamlin, WV to work for Ideal Chevrolet. Paul and Goldie started their family in Hamlin, giving birth to a son, Richard, and a daughter, Paula. In 1969, Paul was asked to take the job as General Manager of a car dealership in Frankfort, KY and moved his family there, selling and servicing Pontiac, Buick, GMC, American Motors and Winnebago vehicles. In Frankfort, they welcomed their third child into the family, Michael.

In 1976, Paul moved his family to Madison, WV when he purchased a stake in Boone Motor Sales, a Ford dealership, and later added the Chrysler, Plymouth, Dodge and Jeep franchises. In 1990 he built a new facility on Corridor G and renamed the business Stephens Auto Center which was the foundation for what is now the Stephens Automotive Group, a network of dealerships serving Southern West Virginia.

Paul and Goldie were Christians and members of Madison Baptist Church.

He and his company won many awards including the Ford President's Award and Chrysler Five Star Award multiple times. He was nominated by the dealers of West Virginia for the Time Magazine Dealer of the Year Award and served for many years on the Ford Dealer Advertising Board.

In his spare time, he labored as an amateur stone mason, building stone walls, sidewalks, patios and fireplaces at his home.

Even after retirement, one of his favorite things was to eat popcorn in the showroom and talk with customers and employees. In the summer, he always grew a vegetable garden. His canned pepper, tomato and onion combination was greatly enjoyed by family and friends.

Paul was an extremely generous person and quietly used much of the resources from his successful business career to help others. While President of the Madison Rotary Club, he began a golf tournament that raised many thousands of dollars for college scholarships. He established the Goldie Stephens Memorial fund at the Boone County Community Foundation. Along with contributions from family and friends, this fund has helped numerous charitable organizations in the area that he and his wife called home.

In addition to his three children, Paul is survived by a daughter-in-law Melissa Stephens and a son-in-law Michael W. Ballard, brother Sheldon Stephens, sister Sharon Bumgarner (Donald), four grandchildren, Micah Madden (Dillon), Cole Ballard, Kendall Stephens (Monica), and Brett Stephens. He is also survived by three great grandchildren, Vada, Vera, and Vivie Madden.

The family would like to thank the many doctors, nurses, and CNAs at Boone Memorial Hospital, WVU Medicine Thomas, Hubbard Hospice house, and especially Breyanna Smith and Jason Lazier who provided for his recent care.

Per his wishes, there will be no public service. Ira and Judy Handley, best friends of Paul and Goldie, are handling the arrangements at Handley Funeral Home in Danville. In lieu of flowers, contributions to Boone County Community Organization's Goldie Stephens Fund or Madison Baptist Church would be appreciated. Friends may visit with the family at Madison Baptist Church from 1 - 3 pm on Saturday, July 18.