Walter H. Schneider

Walter H. Schneider passed away on April 29, 2023. He was born in Frankfurt, Germany on October 22,1928, to Franz Schneider and Johanna Herterich-Schneider, barely surviving his childhood in war torn Germany, he was able to go to trade school and become an electrician.

Although work was plentiful after the war, places to live were not. He married Edith Wallenfels in 1951. They migrated to the United States in 1958 following his older brother Werner as a sponsored electrician to Rainbow Electric. They planned to work for a few years and return to Germany, but that never happened. They decided to make their life here and became United States citizens. They had one daughter.

Walter and Werner, the “German Brothers” as they were known, worked in the Great Falls area for many years. Later, after retiring from Jimco Electric, Walter took up gem faceting, as a hobby and participated in the Big Sky Facetors gems shows in the 1980s and won numerous awards for his faceting skills. He also enjoyed gardening, fishing, and camping at Bean Lake back in the day.

He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Edith; brother, Werner Schneider; niece, Patti Shropshire; and nephew, Werner Muller. He is survived by his daughter, Angie (Tom) Schneider-Broden; sister, Gertrude Muller; niece, Giesela Schneider; and grandniece, Tina Beinholtz.

There will be a viewing for Walter on May 5, 2023, at Schnider Funeral Home from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. with the burial on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. at Highland Cemetery.