Carl Walter

Carl D. Walter, 95, of Rogers, Arkansas, died Monday, July 31, 2017, at Circle of Life Hospice, Bentonville, Arkansas.

He was born Jan. 17, 1922, in Newton, Kansas, to Arnold Benjamin and Dorothy Glennis (Steele) Ratzlaff. After high school, Carl worked for an oil company. In 1945, he enlisted in the Army and was shipped to Nagasaki soon after the bomb dropped. He served in the 361st Engineering Battalion, a unit that constructed many of the airfields in Japan.

Carl returned to the U.S. in October 1946. He started an internship with an uncle doing shoe repair, and in 1947 started his own shop in Hillsboro, Kansas. He married Dorothy Lee Wilson in August 1949. He repaired shoes, tents, saddles, and anything leather. He was in business 36 years. Then he moved to Rogers, Arkansas, in 1983 and started Walter Shoe Repair. He retired in 2015 at 93 years old.

He loved his work and loved people. He was Sunday School superintendent of Zion Lutheran Church in Hillsboro, started a Boy Scout program through American Legion, and helped build the American Legion building in Hillsboro. He started the baseball team. Carl enjoyed boating, water skiing, fishing, and hunting.

He was preceded in death by his parents; grandson Jason Sanders; sister Ester Olivit; and brother Harry Walter.

He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Dorothy; their children, daughter Sandy Sanders and son Timothy Walter and wife, Sherry; grandchildren Heather Chandler and husband, Chuck, and Lindsey Strok and husband, Christopher; great-grandchildren Rhys, Reyn, Chandler, Ashlee, Joshua, Jon, Abby, Jaiden, and Jordan Walter; sisters Elsie Herrington and Dorine Hand; and brother Clarence Walter.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 11, 2017, at First United Methodist Church, 307 W. Elm St., Rogers AR 72756. The Rev. Michael L. Mattox will officiate.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations for memory stone at Circle of Life Hospice, Legacy Village, 1201 NE Legacy Pkwy, Bentonville AR 72712

Arrangements are by Bella Vista Funeral Home and Crematory, 2258 Forest Hills Blvd., Bella Vista, Arkansas. Online condolences may be made at www.funeralmation.com.