More detail on this person: Paul Almer:
CASEY, MOURNERS ATTEND VIEWING OF
STATE TROOPER
Gov. Robert P. Casey joined about 500 mourners in
Bethlehem yesterday at the viewing of a
Pennsylvania State Police helicopter pilot killed
in a crash last week.
A steady stream of uniformed policemen, friends
and colleagues of Cpl. Paul Almer attended the
afternoon and evening calling hours at the Connell
Funeral Home. Almer will be buried with full
military honors later today at Fort Indiantown Gap
after a funeral and Mass in Bethlehem.
The 39-year-old Bethlehem native was one of two
state policemen who died when their helicopter
crashed into the Susquehanna River on Wednesday
while searching for a suicide victim. The aircraft
apparently became tangled in power lines,
investigators said. Also killed was Trooper Wayne
D. Bilheimer, a native of Catasauqua.
The quiet sounds of Crosby, Stills Nash and Young,
the Beatles and other '60s-era music filled the
funeral home at the request of Almer's fiancee,
Linda Murphy of West Chester. The ring that was to
be his wedding ring was on his finger.
Photographs of Almer's personal life and his
aviation career, along with several of his hats,
were displayed among the dozens of floral
arrangements at the funeral home. There was also a
framed copy of a front page article and photo in a
Lancaster newspaper about Almer's compassionate
effort in 1980 to find homes for a litter of
heat-stricken puppies.
Casey kneeled at the open casket, then spoke
briefly with Almer's mother and family members
before completing his short visit. He was joined
at the casket by state Reps. William Rybak,
D-135th District, and Paul McHale, D- 133rd, and
by Bethlehem mayoral candidate Paul Marcincin.
An honor guard of two black-gloved state troopers
stood at the casket while mourners filed past.
Almer was dressed in his state police uniform and
his National Guard uniform was displayed at the
foot of the casket.
Policemen will gather early today at the state
police barracks in Bethlehem before driving their
cruisers to the funeral home for the 9:15 a.m.
service. The police will stand in formation on
Broad Street when the casket is carried out of the
funeral home. After a Mass of Christian Burial in
Notre Dame of Bethlehem Catholic Church, a
procession will drive to the military cemetery at
Fort Indiantown Gap for the burial.
Almer, of Smoketown, Lancaster County, was a
major in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He
commanded a helicopter unit at Fort Indiantown
Gap. He served two tours as a helicopter pilot in
Vietnam. He enlisted in the state police in 1975,
was promoted to corporal in 1985, and was
accepted into the aviation division the next year.
Bilheimer, a criminal investigator assigned to the
Lancaster area, was buried in Mechanic Grove on
Saturday after services attended by 300 police
officers from eight states. The 44-year-old
Catasauqua High School graduate and father of two
was killed during his first ride in the state
police helicopter.
Morning Call, The (Allentown, PA) - Monday, April
17, 1989
This information was last updated 05/18/2016
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