In Memory

Walter A Draeger - Class Of 1935

Walter A Draeger

Walter Draeger, (June 6, 1917 - March 2, 2002) who was born in Austin, Texas, has died. He grew up in the Los Angeles-Pasadena area and graduated from South Pasadena High School in 1935.

Mr. Draeger enlisted in the Army in 1941 and served with the newly formed 10th Mountain Division during World War II and was involved in the Sicily Invasion and the Italian Campaign. He was discharged as a captain in the 87th Battalion in 1945 and returned to California.

In 1946 he married Margot Rosselot. He began working as a salesman for Bridgeport Brass Company in the San Francisco Bay area in 1952 and moved to Medford, Oregon in 1961. Mr. Draeger worked as a salesman for Budge-McQue Plumbing Supply in Oregon before returning to the San Francisco area after his divorce in 1968.

He retired in 1981 and moved to Hayden Lake. Mr. Draeger purchased property in the Benewah Valley near St. Maries in 1991 and moved into his new home there in 1993. He enjoyed gardening and bird-watching. He was a member of the Lake City Harmonizers in Coeur d'Alene, the National Association of the 10th Mountain Division and was a founding member of The Sierra Club.

Survivors include a son, James Draeger of Clackamas, Oregon; two daughters, Dale Draeger of Corvallis, Oregon and Carolyn Pedersen of Elk Grove, California; 11 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

Idaho Spokesman-Review, March 6, 2002