‘Christian Indiana Jones’ dies in plane crash
Family members say Paul Westlund lived a life straight out of a movie.
As a bush pilot in Indonesia, the former West Chicago resident flew a small plane from island to island, helping farmers and merchants peddle their wares and make a living.
He once helped recover a pearl merchant’s stolen goods. And, just like a “Christian Indiana Jones,” his niece said he once escaped modern-day pirates by paddling away from their camp in a canoe carved out of a tree trunk.
“He was larger than life,” said Kari Law, the man’s niece. “His life, you just couldn’t comprehend.”
His great adventure came to an end Thursday when the plane he had used countless times crashed into the side of a mountain in the Papua province of Indonesia, where he had lived for 25 years delivering Bibles and medical supplies to natives. The cause of the crash is unknown.
Law said Westlund, 57, had two mottos he would often repeat: “You just can’t ruin my day,” and “If you are breathing, you should be laughing.”
Westlund flew for various agencies, including National Geographic and government officials. But his main mission had to do with his Christian faith. Westlund delivered Bibles for Wycliffe Bible Translators USA.
“Paul was the most positive person you could ever meet,” Law said. “(But) he was a Christian first, and the adventures just came with the territory.”
In an island country where travel is difficult, someone like Westlund was invaluable. He helped transport building materials and medical supplies to remote regions of the country. He even transported live pigs at times.
Because of his work, he was highly respected in the country and nearly 1,000 people attended his funeral.
In fact, when family members arrived for the funeral Monday, they were escorted and taken in covertly, because the natives would mob them if they knew they were related to “the missionary who wasn’t afraid to play.”
“He was a very happy, positive person to the point that people just looked to him for encouragement when things were going tough,” said his father, Howard Westlund, a pastor who lives in Winfield.
As a boy, Westlund was “adventurous but careful,” his father said. After spending time in North Dakota and Wisconsin, the family settled in West Chicago for Paul’s high school years.
“He has been beloved by his friends and anyone who knows him,” Howard Westlund said.
About 14 years after graduating from West Chicago High School, he moved to Indonesia in 1987. His father said Paul’s missionary work seemed like “a fulfillment” of the purpose Howard had before polio cut short missionary trips in the 1950s.
“It was a total thrill for us to see him pursue missionary service,” Howard said of his only son. “It fits him to a pattern.”
“It’s like he was a streak of light in this world,” Law said. “You don’t encounter that every day.”
Law said a memorial service will be held in the U.S. in December or January when Paul’s wife, LaVonne, and their two children, Mark and Joy, can make it back into the country. Additionally, the family is requesting memories for a memoir or inquiries about donations be sent to kari.rose.law@gmail.com.