Mell Waldmann, 88
Bonners Ferry Herald | UPDATED 1 week, 5 days AGO
Melvyn Paul Waldman, 88, of Bonners Ferry, Idaho, died Saturday, January 17, 2026.
He was born on August 11, 1937, in Lewiston, Idaho, to Julius M. Waldman and Lora E. Beale. In 1946 his sister, Mary Patricia, was adopted.
He played football and basketball at St. Aloysius in Spokane, Wash. He played football, basketball, and ran hurdles at Gonzaga Prep. He studied auto mechanics during his senior year at North Central High School, from which he graduated in 1956.
He served in the U.S. Navy from 1957 to 1964 and was stationed at Hickam Field in Hawaii and other bases.
He married Karin E. Belden on April 27, 1963. Their daughter was born later that year, and they had two sons, born in 1965 and 1969.
He joined the US Coast Guard in 1964 and was stationed at several bases as an Avionics Technician until he retired in 1982 while stationed at the USCG Air Station in Kodiak, Alaska.
He worked for Lockheed Martin in Saana, Yemen and in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.
He had his private pilot’s license and flew his family on his own plane on several adventures.
Mell was a long-haul truck driver for many years, owning his own truck (Black Eagle Trucking) and contracting for Swift Transportation Company.
Mell earned associate’s degrees in electronics, auto mechanics and auto body paint, and aircraft mechanics from Spokane Community College.
He loved to work on vehicles of all types, purchasing “wrecked” ones and working to get them running again. He had quite a collection of them in various stages of completion.
He could fix just about anything electrical and mechanical.
He loved to travel (around the world and across the US), sometimes taking his family, sometimes by himself. He visited all 7 continents. He crossed both the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle.
Mell is survived by his wife of 62 years, Karin (Belden); daughter Monica (Larry) Oliver of Sequim, Wash.; sons Matthew (Tatiana) Waldman of Novato, Calif., and Dave (Emily) Waldman of Liberty Lake, Wash.; his granddaughters: Christina (Daniel), Jaclyn, and Samantha (Lars); and four great-grandchildren: Jenasee, Landon (Natalie), Kyle (Lucy) and Aurora.
He was preceded in death by his parents, sister, parents-in-law, brothers-in-law Carl Leslie Belden and Howard Hedgecock, and great-grandson, Ryker.
Services to be held at a future date. To leave a message or memory for the family go to bonnersferryfuneralhome.com. Bonners Ferry Funeral Home is caring for the family.