Walter Norbert Nickel

Walter Norbert Nickel, former Mayor of Logan, Utah, passed away from old age on February 10, 2017, at his home in Logan, Utah. He was born June 13, 1920, to Herman and Emma Wolf Nickel in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Interestingly, Walter was born on his mother’s birthday and died on his daughter’s birthday. He attended Hadfield Grade School in Waukesha and graduated from Waukesha Junior and Senior High Schools.
Walter grew up during the Great Depression of the 1920s and 1930s, and at the age of thirteen his father died due to a stone-cutting accident. Walter and his mother were without financial support, so Emma found work as a live-in housekeeper. Walter then went to live with his beloved sister Mildred and her husband Merle Scaff, who saw to it that he was raised a good Christian and attended school. Walter worked at almost every conceivable menial job available and caddied at the Merrill Hills Country Club Golf Course, in order to survive in a jobless society during the Depression. He delivered morning newspapers, worked in the fields, and repaired and sold used bicycles (even adding a motor to one). When he was twelve, Walter and a group of about ten boys purchased a Model T car; however, he slowly purchased the ownership “shares” from the other boys until he owned it outright.
After graduating from high school in 1938, he received offers of football scholarships from Marquette University in Milwaukee and Carroll College in Waukesha; but, before accepting a scholarship, Walter and two of his school friends hopped on a freight train and rode in box cars and on flat cars to Seattle, Washington, and down the coast to other parts of the West – “furthering his education,” as he put it. The three intended to get a “seaman’s job and ship out to some place.” Three months later, when he was unable to get a seaman’s license, he returned to Mildred’s home. At that time, he worked as a helper to a floor covering installer while preparing to attend Marquette University where he played on the freshman football team (1938-1939). He then transferred to Carroll College where he also played football for one year (1939-1940).
In January 1942, Walter enlisted in the Army Air Force, where he trained as a pilot and also attended the Army Specialized Training Program at Stanford University. In March 1942, he flew PT-17, BT-13, and AT-6 airplanes in Phoenix, Arizona, at Thunderbird Field in Paradise Valley. In 1943, he was assigned to the Air Force Intelligence School in Salt Lake City, Utah, and later to the Army Air Force Navigational Instructor School at the air base in Salt Lake City.
While stationed in Salt Lake City, Walter met Maxine Brower, and they were married in her home town of Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, on January 23, 1944. After being honorably discharged from the Army in 1946, Walter and Maxine moved to Delafield, Wisconsin, and started a successful floor covering contract installation business, which operated for thirty-five years. They also owned several other Wisconsin businesses and a large farm, which was the site of the largest private sanitary landfill in Wisconsin. Walter and Maxine had two children, Penny Jo and Gary Wayne. Maxine, a life-long member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was overjoyed when Walter decided to be baptized in 1956, and the Nickel family was sealed in the Salt Lake Temple in 1960.
In 1974, Walter and Maxine retired and moved to Logan, where they developed Palatial Living Mobile Home Subdivision, which is still owned and operated by their family. Walter was active in community affairs, serving as Mayor of Logan City from 1978 to 1982. During those four years, he served as President and Chairman of the Logan Building Authority, actively seeking land for and then building the Logan City Service Center, which consolidated all city service units under one roof.
Walter served his church in many callings, including as Bishop of the new Logan 25th Ward. He was a counselor in several Bishoprics and served on High Councils in both Wisconsin and Utah. Other service included Sunday School teacher, Explorer Scout leader, Tour Guide at the Logan Tabernacle, and High Priests Group instructor. He and Maxine served a senior mission for the LDS church in the Mexico Guadalajara Mission from 1982 to 1983, where he served as a counselor to the mission president.
In 1983, Walter and Maxine returned home to Logan and purchased a 40-foot motor home, which they used to travel throughout the country visiting family and friends. They established a winter home in Apache Junction, Arizona. Their plans to continue to enjoy their life together were suddenly interrupted when Maxine unexpectedly passed away on September 25, 1986, in Salt Lake City.
After Maxine’s passing, Walter met and married Beverly Fitton Andrew on October 3, 1987, in Salt Lake City. They were sealed in the Logan Temple on August 1, 1998. They also “motor-homed” for many years, living in Arizona, Logan, Bountiful, St. George, and Salt Lake City. He was close to Beverly’s five adult children. She passed away on July 20, 2006.
After her passing, Walter kept himself busy by restoring vintage automobiles. He continued this hobby until only a couple of years ago, and his collection includes twelve classics. Walter could fix almost anything around the house, and he also remodeled and built many homes, including his and Maxine’s home in Delafield, Wisconsin.
Walter is survived by his daughter, Penny Jo Stucki (Joseph William), Champaign, Illinois, and his son, Gary Wayne Nickel (Alexis Pond), Tacoma, Washington, as well as by his grandchildren: Tawnya Stucki Franckowiak (Robert), Logan, Utah; Julia Stucki Mattson (William), Fallston, Maryland; Marshall S. Nickel (Erika), Tacoma, Washington; Aaron K. Stucki (Heather), Fallston, Maryland; Matthew D. Nickel (Heather), Houston, Texas; Kendra Stucki Burns (John), St. George, Utah; Mark A. Nickel (Angela), Phoenix, Arizona; Kara Stucki Francis (Luke), Minnetonka, Minnesota; Adam T. Nickel (Marnie), Tacoma, Washington; Trisha Stucki Erickson (David), Eden Prairie, Minnesota; Elizabeth Nickel Miracle (Jeff), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Walter N. Nickel, II (Candice), Washington, D.C.; and by his forty-seven great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, February 18, 2017, at noon, with a viewing prior from 10:30 am to 11:30 am, at the Willow Valley Ward located at 825 N. 200 W., Logan, Utah 84321. A viewing will also be held on Friday, February 17, 2017, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the Allen-Hall Mortuary, 34 E. Center Street, Logan, Utah 84321. Condolences and memories may be shared and this obituary may be found online at www.allenmortuaries.net .