Walter, 83, died February 6, 2012, in Ketchikan, Alaska. He attended South Dakota State University before transferring to Colorado State University, from which he earned a bachelor's degree in Forest Management in 1951. That same summer, Walter trained and jumped from Missoula, his only season. He then joined the U.S. Marine Corps, serving from 1952 through 1954. His entire career involved work with wood products, and Walter was talented in woodworking, building large doll houses as a specialty.