Dear Pauly…
It was 2013, and I found myself walking into a little Irish pub in Columbus, Ohio, for a job interview. To be honest, I almost bailed—I’d had a bit too much to drink the night before. But I was craving a change of pace and atmosphere, so I showed up anyway. That decision changed everything.
This is where I met Mark (someone we all lost too soon and whom I still think of daily) and soon landed a position as a bartender. A few shifts in, I met Noah… and we all know where that story leads. Around the same time, I also met Pauly.
Pauly was an investor in the restaurant and, as I later learned, the one who helped Noah secure his position as executive chef. One of my first instructions at work was clear: never let Pauly have an empty Bud Light in front of him. He tipped well, loved a good conversation, and quickly became a familiar face.
It didn’t take long for me to realize just how big a part of Noah’s life Pauly already was. They had met one fateful afternoon at Roosters, where they spent hours sitting at the bar. Not long after, Noah joined the Roosters softball team and moved into one of Pauly’s rentals—a beautiful one-bedroom apartment on Schiller Park in German Village, conveniently located right next door to Pauly. This proximity only fueled their friendship and all the chaos that came with it.
After Noah and I met, we began spending late nights at the local watering hole, dreaming about starting a food truck and being our own bosses. Those conversations evolved into a long, grueling process of developing a business plan.
We then pitched our idea and business plan to Pauly. We spent countless hours at tables covered in Bud Lights and amortization schedules (I still hate those things). It was soon after, that Pauly stepped up. He offered to invest, and that loan helped us turn our dreams into reality. But his generosity didn’t stop there. Nearly every home we lived in while we were in Ohio was one of Pauly’s rentals! He took us under his wing, supported us in the little things and the big things, and, more than anything, just genuinely enjoyed our company; he even said yes to standing by Noah’s side when he decided to marry me…what a lucky guy that Noah is!
Even after moving back to Louisville, the memories of Pauly’s influence, kindness, and humor stay with us. I hate the distance that grew between us, but I’ll always cherish what he meant to Noah and me.
Pauly, I hope you and Mark are sitting at a blackjack table together somewhere in the skies. We love you. This loss hits hard, especially for Noah. Until we meet again….
