Walter “Walt” Schloer, Jr.

Published 10:56 am Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Walter “Walt” Schloer, Jr.

June 22, 1939 – June 19, 2024

Walter “Walt” Schloer, Jr. passed away at St. Charles Medical Center on June 19, 2024, at the age of 84.

The oldest of three brothers, Walt was born in Red Wing, Minnesota on June 22, 1939, and spent much of his youth in Minneapolis. He attended the University of Minnesota, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Forestry in 1961. After college, Walt began a US Forest Service career that included assignments on the Inyo, Angeles, Sequoia, San Bernardino, Los Padres, and Deschutes National Forests. He also served in Vietnam as an Army cryptographer, for a total of 44 years in federal service.

Walt married Harriett Louise Hansen in 1969 after her mother, also a USFS employee, introduced them at an office gathering; son Karl and daughter Kelly would arrive in the next few years. In 1980, Walt accepted an assignment as the Bend District Ranger, a position he held until the merger of the Bend and Fort Rock Districts in 1995. Walt continued as the Bend-Fort Rock District Ranger until he retired in 2005 and remained active in the Bend community the rest of his life.

Many Central Oregonians knew Walt based on his job, but he touched many more worldwide as a strong supporter of Rotary International, serving as District Governor and chairman of the District 5110 World Community Service Committee. He was also a lifelong supporter of the Boy Scouts and, later in life, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and multiple veterans’ organizations. His recreational activities matched his professional and charitable choices, with hiking, fishing, hunting and boating as his preferred leisure pursuits.

Walt was preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Gladys Schloer. His survivors include his brothers Kenneth and Ronald and their families; wife Harriett; son Karl and his wife Trina; daughter Kelly and her husband Josh Beaudry; and grandchildren William, Matthew, and Anna Beaudry.

A formal remembrance will take place at VFW Post 1643 in Bend on Saturday, August 3, 2024, at 10:30 AM. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, friends make donations in Walt’s memory to the Rotary Foundation, Boy Scouts, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, or VFW. The family also encourages those with memories of Walt to leave their thoughts in the electronic memory book at www.niswonger-reynolds.com.