Former Hamilton County Councilman Paul Ayers dies. He was 79.

In January, former Hamilton County Councilor Paul Ayers watched his daughter Teresa enter local politics when she won a GOP caucus to fill a seat on the Carmel City Council.

It was a special night, Teresa Ayers said. Both were precinct committee persons and participated in the caucus.

But Ayers had one thing to tell his daughter when the caucus election was over.

“It was ‘Get to work, Teresa,’” she recalled him saying. “Get to work.”

The message to his daughter was just like Paul Ayers’ approach to service across organizations in Hamilton County, especially his two terms on the Hamilton County Council where his former councilors said Ayers was always fair and steadfast in his beliefs.

Ayers, a Carmel resident, died Friday. He was 79.

More: After councilman's death, Hamilton County Republicans choose Teresa Ayers to fill seat

Ayers graduated from Purdue University with a degree in physical education, but spent 40 years as a real estate developer with Marks Companies, according to his obituary.

He was part of the U.S. Marine Corps and received awards for sharpshooting and becoming a pistol expert during his service.

He was also deeply involved in the Catholic church at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, including coaching the school’s track team and teaching religious education.

Ayers passed his faith onto his eight children: Todd, Elly, Katherine, Anthony, Emily, Sara, Teresa and Christopher.

“He was the funniest, fun dad that anybody could ask for,” said Emily Campbell, one of Ayers’ daughters. “He just always made us laugh. He made our friends laugh. He was just a man of ethics and morals and just very faithful. He always taught us to keep Christ in our lives.”

In Hamilton County, Ayers was involved in community organizations such as Indiana Right to Life, the Carmel American Legion and the Hamilton County Republican Party.

Outside of local politics, Ayers was an avid runner and a triathlete. Ayers enjoyed spending time with his family and he deeply loved his wife, Cheryl, who died in 2020.

“The love he had for our mom was apparent to us in our household growing up, to neighbors and to the community and our church,” said Katherine Cervenka, one of Ayers’ daughters. “He was good to his community, but his love, number one, was my mom.”

2 terms on the Hamilton County Council

Ayers always participated in some kind of public service, said Elly Couto, one of Ayers’s daughters. That motivation eventually led Ayers to the Hamilton County Council. He was elected in 2010 and reelected to a second term in 2014.

“He just always wanted to help and give back to whatever community he was a part of. Seeing him work that all the way into, you know, his political career that he had in Hamilton County, it was just a part of who he was,” Couto said. "And to see him mentor our sister into that. It's just very special."

Ayers's knowledge of local and state politics helped prepare him well for his role on the council, said Brad Beaver, an at-large Hamilton County councilor who served with Ayers.

Beaver, who has served on the council since 1994, said it takes many newly-elected officials a lot of time to understand how the county council works, but Ayers was more than prepared when he took office.

“Paul already knew the landscape, not just in the county, but in the statewide area,” Beaver said. “So he already hit the ground running.”

Beaver said Ayers was “a good guy” and strong in his beliefs. He would not “flip flop” on an issue when serving on the council, Beaver said.

“There were a couple of issues where it got a little heated and we had people from the public coming in and yelling at us,” Beaver said. “Paul never wavered. You didn’t have to worry about him.”

Former Hamilton County Councilor Rick McKinney said an example of Ayers’ values came in 2015 when the Hamilton County Council nixed plans to fund a $3 million fire training center.

From 2015: Hamilton County Council nixes $3M for safety training facility

Ayers was the council president at the time and voted against the plan along with McKinney, Beaver, and former Hamilton County Councilor Fred Glynn. Those four members often served as a conservative bloc on the councils, seeing themselves as taxpayer stewards.

In regards to the training center, they felt Hamilton County did not have a statutory obligation to fund fire departments, believing such a project was more the purview of the towns and cities.

McKinney recalled Ayers giving a “passionate dissertation” about his family’s background in fire departments.

“I’m sitting there holding my breath, thinking that he’s going to switch his vote, because he had already told me and Brad and Fred how he was going to vote,” McKinney said. “And then he goes, ‘but I’m not voting for it.’ And there’s a gasp from all the fire people in the room.”

But despite criticism for the vote, McKinney said Ayers always saw the best in people.

“I'll say the biggest thing was he was fair, and he wanted the best for the county,” McKinney said.

Gatherings to remember Ayers will be held Thursday and Friday at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church, according to Ayers' obituary.

Starting at 4 p.m. Thursday, family and friends will gather to pray the rosary. Visitation begins at 10:30 a.m. Friday with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:30 a.m.

Contact IndyStar's Carmel and Westfield reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter @CarloniBrittany.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Hamilton County Councilman Paul Ayers remembered for hard work, faith