Donald Walter Fromm

Donald Walter Fromm, aged 97, of Great Falls, Montana passed away peacefully on Wednesday January 29, 2025, at Beehive Maple residential care facility. He was born on November 3, 1927, in Gilfillian, Minnesota to Felix and Mary Fromm.

Don grew up on and worked the family farm in Minnesota along with his 3 brothers and 4 sisters. At age 19, he joined the Navy and became a medical corpsman, stationed on Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana and San Diego, California. After his service, he returned to Minnesota where he worked various jobs including that of a bartender. A pretty schoolteacher named Beryle Meilander would stop by the bar on her way home to have a beer and flirt with the handsome Don.

Don and Beryle married in 1951, and after a short time in California moved to Montana to start and have a grand life and 72 years together. Don and Beryle worked at various ranches in Montana for a few years as cowboy and cook and finally settled in Conrad where they had five children, Lynn, Steve, Kelly, Lisa, and Laura. Don worked as a tractor mechanic in Conrad for many years and as a milkman for a few more. In 1967, Don moved his family to Great Falls to start a new job as a mechanic at AC Supply. Don and Beryle settled into their lives raising their children and enjoying all that comes with it. Don continued to move up in the world of farm implements and joined a new start-up from Fargo, Steiger Tractor. Don started as a mechanic, servicing the new tractors on-site. As he excelled in his job, he trained other mechanics and moved up to work as a district manager, and later sales manager, ultimately winning salesman of the year in 1979. His work took him all over the western United States and as far away as Australia, Yugoslavia, and Hungary.

Don and Beryle bought a cabin in Neihart Montana as a quiet get-away from the job and stress. This became one of Don’s favorite places. When they retired in 1985, they began to snowbird between Neihart, Montana in the summer and Mesa Arizona in the winter. They enjoyed travelling between places, staying with their children from Great Falls to Spokane, Washington to Seattle on the way down and back. In Mesa, they enjoyed a very busy life, with Don involved in bowling, pool, and shuffleboard leagues. While there he learned to paint, his subject matter landscapes, and clowns or anything you requested. He created many paintings that are cherished by his children and family. After 35 busy and amazing years, Don and Beryle returned to Great Falls during the 2020 pandemic and remained there near their children until their passing.

Don was a gentle, generous, and well-loved man. At parting company, he would always say “thanks for the call” and “be nice to the people.”   He will be truly missed.

Don is survived by his sisters, Dede Wohnoutka and Ruth Warne; brothers, Tom and Doug Fromm; daughter, Lynn Fromm; son, Steve (Therena) Fromm; son, Kelly (Pamela) Fromm; daughter, Lisa Fromm Maxwell; daughter, Laura Fromm; 10 grandchildren, Zackery Fromm, Alexa (Kjell) Olson, Taylee (Cory) Schlauch, Tyler Fromm, Colt Tronson, McKenna Fromm, Brandon Fromm, Stephanie (Bryan) Swann, Dylan Maxwell, and Lane (Cindy) Maxwell; and 5 great-grandchildren, Mila and Walker Schlauch, Sayer and Sutton Olson, and Palmer Maxwell.

Don was preceded in death by his parents, Felix and Mary; wife, Beryle; brothers, Lenny and Joseph Fromm; and sisters, Alice Imker and Marie Curran.

A funeral Mass for Don is scheduled for February 28, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, followed by the interment of both Donald and Beryle Fromm at Mount Olivet Cemetery.

Thank you to the Beehive Maple House staff and Hospice for your compassionate care.