Jacob James Snell, 40
Jacob James Snell, 40, passed away on Sunday, Aug. 14, 2022, at his family farm in Creston.
Jacob was born on July 22, 1982, to Robert and Sharon Hubbard Snell, joining his two older sisters, Lynnette and Tiffany.
Jacob was a cherubic boy with a kind heart and sweet smile. He grew up riding bikes with his good friends Geno Randano, Carson Ring and Levi Weaver, stopping often to get penny candy at Lake Blaine Resort where his older sister, Lynnette, and his favorite cousin, David, worked. His love for the lake and watersports grew as he spent many summer days at his grandparents' lake property, becoming a legend at tubing and tossing friends and relatives into the water, promising he wasn’t going to go easy on anyone. Kayaking, biking, and fishing with his stepson and family brought him peace and joy. He spent many hours gaming with online friends whom we never met but knew by name as family, B-Rad, Matt, Cameron, and Sam among a few. He had the opportunity to meet some of them in person and travel to places we only dreamed of, returning with hilarious stories and the biggest smiles.
During the day he farmed alongside his dad, Bob Snell, on the generational family farm. He loved his dad and had a deep respect for many of the farmers he met, speaking of their excellent character, especially Rand Robinn. He became a skilled welder, mechanic and machinist. STEM studies were his forte. He found ways to engineer and use his computer science savvy to navigate rapidly changing farm equipment and design, printing parts no longer made on his 3D printer. He possessed an amazing analytical engineering mind that deeply contemplated the world. Those who knew him would be drawn into deep discussions about every topic imaginable and if he didn’t know about it, he would spend hours researching it until he did.
Jake had a love for travel. He set out on an adventure in 2014 to apprentice with a woodworker in Japan. He developed a deep love for Japan and while there, he met his future wife, Michiyo Amanai Snell. Between farming seasons Jacob and Michiyo traveled the world together with her two children, Milea and Miron Van Deijvenbode, whom Jacob adored. He loved introducing Miron to all his favorite haunts, fishing Lake Blaine, skiing/boarding the slopes of Whitefish Mountain, riding bikes down back roads and visiting Hawaii. His favorite moments in life were those spent with the ones he loved, doing things they enjoyed and just enjoying their presence, their laughter, and joy. He would do anything for anyone in need and loved and cared for many beloved animals that showed up in his barn, or his sister placed on his doorstep.
Jacob was preceded in death by his sister, Tiffany Ann Snell in 1996, and his paternal and maternal grandparents.
He is survived by his wife, Michiyo Amanai Snell (Dubai); his stepdaughter, Milea Van Deijvenbode (Japan); and stepson, Miron Van Deijvenbode, currently at school in Hawaii; his parents, Robert and Sharon Kay Snell, of Kalispell; his sister, Mrs. Chad (Lynnette) Cattron, of Kalispell; nephew, Caleb Cattron; nieces, Cassandra and Gwynnovere Cattron; and many beloved cousins, aunts and uncles who loved and adored him.
He will join his sister, Tiffany, in a private family burial of their ashes in C.E. Conrad Memorial Cemetery where his paternal grandparents and great-grandparents are laid to rest.