Walter Arthur Ryder, 93

Walter Arthur Ryder, 93, of Boise, Idaho, passed away peacefully on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25, 2021, following a brief illness.

He was born on Dec. 17, 1927, to Walter Arthur Ryder Sr., and Effie Stuart Hurd Ryder, in Dalkena, Washington. At age 7 the family moved to Kalispell where he graduated from high school in 1946. He obtained a bachelor’s in business administration at the University of Montana (at the time Montana State University) in Missoula, where he met the love of his life, Marion Louise Liggett, whom he married on Sept. 10, 1950, in Roundup, Montana. Together they raised four children, Jean, Dennis, Jan and Jim. During the Korean War, he was stationed in Germany as a first lieutenant in the Air Force. Afterwards, he completed a bachelor’s and then master’s degree in chemistry at Montana State University (at the time Montana State College) in Bozeman. From there the family moved in 1957 to Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he spent the next 35 years working as an analytical chemist at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory before retiring. In 1991, he and his wife moved to Pocatello and subsequently to Boise, Idaho, in 2003, where he enjoyed his retirement years traveling, reading, especially about science, astronomy and history, and playing with the grandkids. He was a kind and gentle man who, above all, loved his family and was especially devoted to his wife.

He is survived by his wife, Marion, of 71 years; children, Dennis (Anni) of Pleasanton, California, Jan of North Attleborough, Massachusetts, and James (Anita) of Boise; grandchildren, Chris, Amanda and Daniel; sister, Joey Hatton, of Kalispell; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his daughter Jean, brothers Norman and Spencer, and sisters Eppie Slater and Verla Cherubini.

Burial arrangements will be private.