Lea Christopher Grimshaw

Lea Christopher Grimshaw, 75, of Great Falls, passed away Monday, April 30, 2018. A graveside service will be held on Saturday, May 12, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. at Highland Cemetery. Schnider Funeral Home is handling the arrangements. Lea was born on August 12, 1942 in Hartford, Connecticut to Herbert and Carol (Turner) Grimshaw. He went to E.C. Goodwin Tech School to become a state certified plumber in 1956 while he was still in high school. He joined the Air Force in 1959 at the age of seventeen and was stationed at Ramey AFB in Puerto Rico until being stationed at Malmstrom AFB. After being honorably discharged he got a job as a second engineer at KFBB Radio. In 1966, he began his 45 year civil service career at both Travis AFB and Malmstrom AFB. He started in maintenance and advanced to hospital plant manager then traffic manager before becoming the ground safety manager. He retired as the Chief of Ground Safety at Malmstrom in 2008. He married Jean Harner in 1961 and they had two children, Ronnie and Lisa. They later divorced. He then married Gwen Weninger in 1982, and he adopted her two children, Angela and Randy. Together they had two more children, Christopher and Alicia. Lea was a truly kind and generous man. He took care of his family, friends and neighbors whenever a helping hand was needed. He was a lifetime donor at the Red Cross and donated over 440 units of blood during his lifetime. He loved dancing and was on the American Bandstand in 1957. He also enjoyed camping with family, spending time with his grandson, Teagan, shooting pool and working on his ’71 Chevy. Lea is survived by his wife, Gwen; daughters Lisa, Angela, and Alicia (Malcolm); sons Randy (Rachel) and Christopher; brothers Jean (Mary) and Herbert; granddaughters Tylarann and Haylea; grandsons Aric, Jessie and Philip; and great-grandchildren Teagan and Miai. He was preceded in death by his parents and son Ronnie.