Paula Anne Kacher

Paula was my student in the first translation class I ever taught (back in the winter of 1986) and I was her very first translation teacher. Though she was away for many years, we always had a soft spot for each other.
On completing the translation program at New York University’s School of Continuing Education, Paula began freelancing with us at United Nations Headquarters. Early on, her work was praised by the Training Officer and a top reviser who later became Chief of Service. And a retiree who regularly came back on contract - a legendary figure affectionately known as Geff - picked up on Paula’s writing talent and her spirit of adventure, and took her under her wing. (Geff, by the way, had not only been with the UN since it was established but had also been a stowaway on a Mexican ship (to see the world!) and active in the French Resistance movement during the Second World War.) At one point during those years that she was freelancing at Headquarters, Paula was living on St. Mark’s Place. I remember going to a terrific party at the brownstone she was renting with a friend. To this day, whenever I’m at Porto Rico, the popular coffee place right across the street from that brownstone, I can still picture Paula at the door, in her creative attire, welcoming her guests.
Paula shared my office on one of her last freelance assignments at Headquarters. Which meant that I was one of the first to hear that she would be getting married, and to rejoice with her as she prepared for her new life in the south of France.
When she retired from UNESCO and returned to New York many years later, Paula joined our little group of UN retirees who celebrate each other’s birthdays over lunch. Between her travel adventures, her voice lessons, her beloved crafts and jewelry making, and her roles as an extra in films and on television (donning stately colonial costumes for one of those shows was right up her alley), Paula brought her joy of living to every lunch gathering. As Paula’s and my November birthdays were one day apart, in addition to celebrating with the whole group, we always sent each other birthday greetings on the day of.
Paula made a necklace for my 70th birthday that I absolutely love. Its delicate creativity and shades of pink and blue make me feel as I’m stepping out of a French painting. She knew how much I loved that necklace and especially, that she had made it, and from then on, I could never wait to see her latest creations (which she sometimes wore to our birthday lunches). I gave a pair of her earrings as a holiday gift (Paula insisted on giving me a “friend’s discount”) and thought that would surely become a tradition.
This past December, when I visited Paula at the hospice, she was her usual active self, busy with her crafts and her water colors. She said she had begun making hair combs and showed me an absolutely gorgeous photo of one. It took less than a second for me to ask if I could buy it to give as a holiday gift, and we agreed that I would. But less than 3 weeks later, Paula’s and my dear friend Cindy called to tell me she had a gift from Paula for me. It was that exquisite hair comb I had wanted to buy. I had been planning to give it to a young family member who is a concert artist and always dresses elegantly for performances. But I knew in my heart of hearts that I couldn’t let this gift from Paula go any further than my own flesh and blood. And so, my twin daughters will be wearing Paula’s hair comb to friends’ and cousins’ weddings and to other special life events over the years. One daughter lives in Brooklyn, the other lives in Chicago, but they will never put Paula’s precious hair comb in the mail. They will only ever exchange it in person when they visit each other.
I was so grateful for the chance to see Paula one last time in December on a visit with Cindy and Art. Even at the hospice, she was welcoming, vivacious, steeped in her crafts and her water colors and movies – living every day to the fullest just as she had throughout her life. That is how I will always remember her - exuding beauty, joy and graciousness - even if, for now, I continue to alternate between sadness and disbelief that Paula, who was so full of life, has left us.
From Laurie Treuhaft
(friend, colleague - and once upon a time, teacher)

Paula was my closest neighbor for ten years, on the same floor of a small building in the charming Mouzaia district, a sort of village and enclave of serenity forgotten by tourists in the heart of Paris. A very intelligent and charming neighbor with whom I had more than one thing in common, not least our love of translation, since I too was a literary translator. I remember the wonderful discussions we had about literature, but also about the chaotic march of the world. Seventy-eight is really too young to die these days.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

I just saw this message, or I would have written sooner!
Paula was a recent friend, and we only had a chance to get together a few times. She was in my enameling class briefly and made some lovely pieces. She always seemed full of joy and was a pleasure to be with.
It is hard to believe she is gone. Despite our short aquaintance, I will miss her.

Dear Paula,
I will miss you so much. I knew you for almost sixty years. We were street mates on Downs Circle in Wynnewood, roommates in the East Village in New York (those were some really fun times) & friends for life. Going to movies, concerts, exhibitions & travelling (Spain , Paris, London, Maine, Mexico, I'm sure I'm leaving some out) - these were passions we shared and I will always cherish our time together. And did I mention shopping; there was a little of that too along the way. You had a wonderful, rich life & your many friends will miss you dearly.

Paula and I became friends in 8th grade. We did a lot of wild and crazy things (for us) through high school, kept in touch in college, took a trip to Europe in 1969. In 1972 we were roommates in her apartment in the Bronx when we were both in graduate school. We lost touch after that until we managed to have a dinner together in Paris in 2012. She was such a unique person--I learned a lot from her, and we had so much fun. I realize now how much I loved her.

I met Paula some fourty years ago. She came for short tem contracts in the organisation where I worked. We soon became friends, mainly thanks to her, I must admit, because I was shy and I needed to be encouraged to discover my feelings, whereas she was brave and did not fear to hold out her hand to those she liked. I am deeply thankful to her for this.
I remember she started singing lessons at that time and accepted to sing in front of an audience, which I admired very much, for I knew how difficult it is, and even terrifying, if you start late in life.
We went to Italy together many times. She always managed to find superb flats in exceptional conditions. I remember that once we could stay in a house in a village by a beautiful lake, her only obligation being to look after the cat! Well, I could go on and on...
Thanks a lot to those of her friends who contributed lovely photos of her as a young woman and later.
I am so sad you feft us, dear Paula!

My friendship with Paula spanned 50 years. We met in Philadelphia when we did the same training program in behavior therapy. Needing housing, she soon moved into the place I was renting with her big, restless, but very sweet dog, Rema.
One thing I loved so much about Paula was that she dared to lead the life that she wanted to live and was brave enough to take big risks to do so. A few weeks after I moved from Philadelphia to Amsterdam with the help of Dutch friends, Paula moved to Paris without a job or knowing anyone there simply because she wanted to do so. After a short while there, she met Dominique who was moving to New York. I implored her not to follow him to the U.S., but, of course, she did. After many ups and downs, they eventually married and then moved back to France where they settled in a sublimely charming house in Provence. A while after they split up, Paula moved back to Paris where she established herself as a translator and managed to land a job at UNESCO - quite a feat! Thanks to her, I got to know Paris and Provence well.
Paula had many interests. She took singing lessons and developed her beautiful, powerful voice. Being an inveterate shopper with exquisite taste, she was always well dressed and bejewelled, the latter of which were increasingly made by her own hands.
I could go on and on. What a rich personality and life!! I will miss her terribly.

Paula is a lovely soul.

I am so saddened to hear of our loss. Paula was a dear friend, from 1976 and onward. A truly warm-hearted curious, vibrant woman. She was courageous, adventurous and loving, not to mention loyal and passionate. We visited her in Paris about 10 years ago, and she showed us around graciously, and we reconnected a few years ago when she returned to NYC. I will miss her - I miss her already.

I am heartbroken. I met Paula over fifty years ago. She was completely wonderful and we had great times for years. I introduced her to our legendary therapists Sam and Diana, and she started working with them and decided to become a therapist herself. She got a PhD in the field. She was the sweetest and loveliest young lady imaginable and we always cherished memories of her. We give our deepest most heartfelt love and condolences to Phyllis, Donald and all who knew her.

J'ai cueilli ce brin de bruyère
L'automne est morte souviens-t'en
Nous ne nous verrons plus sur terre
Odeur du temps brin de bruyère
Mais souviens-toi que je t'attends