Ivan Louis O'Neil, 96

Ivan O'Neil, 96, passed away peacefully at Immanuel Living in Kalispell on July 15, 2025, leaving behind a life filled with hard work, wisdom, adventure, leadership, and love.

Born Oct. 1, 1928, in Kalispell, Ivan was a man of many talents and passions — a hiker, skier, husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and friend. He was also a visionary entrepreneur who built a successful career in the building and hardware industry as co-founder of Western Building Center and Kalmont Distributors.

Ivan was born to one of the Flathead Valley’s pioneering families. His mother, Amanda Severson O’Neil, died when he was just 2, and he was raised by his father, Louis, and his grandmother, Frieda O’Neil. When he was in eighth grade, he started working for a relative’s business, O’Neil Lumber Co., an experience he would later draw on to start his own lumberyard. As a teenager, he lied about his age to work three summers for the Forest Service as a fire lookout.

A graduate of what was then known as Flathead County High School, Ivan wasn’t able to enlist in the military with his friends because he’d been struck by a gopher hunter’s stray bullet that lodged in his chest when he was 15. So in 1946, he enrolled at the University of Montana, joined the Theta Chi fraternity, and graduated in 1950 with a degree in business administration.

In 1951, he married his college sweetheart, Marian Fosland, in Scobey, Montana, and the two of them moved to Seattle, where he worked for the U.S. Army Audit Agency. They lived in Fort Ord, California, for a summer and moved to Kalispell with their infant daughter in 1954. Ivan teamed up with Les Kjos, who operated a cabinet shop, and they created Western Woodwork and Supply, later named Western Building Center, which now has a dozen lumberyards and hardware stores as well as manufacturing facilities. Ivan retired as general manager in 1996 and stayed active in the business as board chairman.

Ivan served on several boards over the years and was recognized as the 2004 Businessman of the Year and 2005 Great Chief by the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce. He served as a charter member and officer for the Evergreen Lions Club and Sunrisers Lions Club, vice president of the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the Flathead Municipal Airport Authority, president of Immanuel Lutheran Home, treasurer and trustee of Bethlehem Lutheran Church, charter member and treasurer of Northridge Lutheran Church, and member of the Montana State Board of Personnel Appeals, the University of Montana President’s Advisory Council, and the UM Foundation Board.

Over the years, Ivan had many hobbies. He was an amateur radio operator, an early Apple computer geek, a cross-country and downhill skier, and a traveler. His favorite places were his home in Northridge and the Flathead Lake property he developed for his family, with a lakehouse and several cabins.

He may be best known as the last of the founding members of the Over The Hill Gang (OTHG). In 1976, he started hiking with a group of businessmen every Thursday during the warmer months in Glacier National Park. The group kept growing as the years went on, with Ivan’s friend George Ostrom chronicling their adventures in his radio broadcasts and newspaper columns. At one point, he estimated they’d hiked more than 600 of the park’s 700-plus trails and scaled more than 120 mountain peaks.

As a devoted husband and father, Ivan balanced his ambitious professional life with an unwavering commitment to his family. After his youngest grandchild was born, he treated his extended family to many cruises and trips. Sadly, Marian preceded him in death after 55 years of marriage, in 2006.

Ivan lost his vision in 2007 to macular degeneration, but he continued to hike, using poles and keeping his steady pace to navigate the terrain. He never slowed down, and he showed his gratitude to helpful friends with his annual Ivan’s Driver Appreciation Party.

One of those helpful friends was a schoolmate from childhood, who had also lost her spouse. The two of them got together for social weekends and world travel, marrying in 2020.

Ivan is survived by his wife, Gerry Souhrada; his three children, Sue Schottelkorb of Kalispell, Cheri O’Neil of Santa Cruz, California, and Steve O’Neil of Bozeman; sons-in-law, Bill Schottelkorb and Danny Friedman; daughter-in-law, Peggy O’Neil; five grandchildren, April (Rod) Schottelkorb of Kalispell, Andy (Lucy) Schottelkorb of Somers, Amanda (Cole) Matthews of Tigard, Oregon, Marisa (Matt) Hoyne of Kalispell, and Joey (Tiffany) Matthews of Orinda, California; 11 great-grandchildren, Rylee and Alia; Eliana, Liam, and Lydia; Marian and Adeline; Maisie and Signe; Sloan and Parker; and niece Jane (Tom) Gidlewski of LaPorte, Colorado.

As Ivan said in an interview with an author writing about the OTHG, “It has been quite a ride over the years.”

A memorial service is planned for 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 15, at the Flathead Valley Community College Arts & Technology Building, room 139, 777 Grandview Dr., Kalispell, with burial at C.E. Conrad Memorial Cemetery. Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Immanuel Foundation (immanuelfoundation.org) or to the Marian F. and Ivan L. O'Neil Endowed Scholarship at Flathead Valley Community College (fvcc.edu/about/fvcc-foundation/give).