Walter Thorle Bowling

Obituary

Class of 1938

Sept. 13, 1920 – Sept. 7, 2012

Walter Thole Bowling was born in Ontario, Ore., on September 13, 1920 to Edith Adele Thorley and Walter Cleveland Bowling. He was raised in Weiser, Idaho and moved to McCall, Idaho after high school graduation where his parents owned the Bowing Lodge. He fought forest fires from 1936 to 1941.

On the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He fought in the South Pacific aboard the USS Columbia and U.S.S. Orleans light cruisers. He left the Navy while in Okinawa after peace was declared.

After the war he returned to Idaho and married Betty Lou Ness and had three children. He joined the Boise Fire Department in May 1946 retiring as Captain after 30 years. He spent his retirement traveling through the southern U.S. and Mexico with his second wife Betty J (Connally). They settled in Sun Lakes, Ariz., where he enjoyed golfing, working out at the gym, and investing in the stock market.

His wife died in 2004, and he moved back to Boise and then to Washington to live near his kids. He was a lifetime member of the Boise Retired Firefighters Assn., DAV, and BPOE #2429. He passed peacefully on September 7, 2012, in Bellevue, Wash., just short of his 92nd birthday.

He is survived by his children Nichoe Bowling, Deena Kelly and Tamara Coen, grandson Cory Landis, brother Ronald Bowling, and four nephews. Our dad defended our country and protected our forests and homes. He saved lives. He is a true hero. A private service will be held at a lighthouse on the Washington coast.

From The Idaho Statesman – Boise, Idaho – Sunday, September 30, 2012