Gene Ehrmantrout

Gene Ehrmantrout

Gene Ehrmantrout passed away on Monday, June 10, 2019, at the Boundary County Extended Care Facility in Bonners Ferry. He was 90 years old. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 18, 2019 at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, with interment following in the Grandview Cemetery.

Gene was born Aug. 30, 1928, on the Green Ranch south of Bowman, N.D., to Antone Ehrmantrout and Luella Bennett Ehrmantrout. He had many fond memories of the years he lived in North Dakota. The family moved to Bonners Ferry where Gene and his brothers and sister attended school.

Gene was drafted into the Army in 1950 and served in Korea and Japan. When he returned home he married Betty Tritt and they were together for 66 years. They had three children, David (Carol) Ehrmantrout, Julie (Tim) Dillin, and Jeannie (Rick) Alonzo, nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Gene was preceded in death by his brothers Bill and Dale and his sister Donna and is survived by his brother Milo.

Gene believed in hard work, holding many jobs through the years including the Great Northern Railroad, Sigmund Foods, Hines and later Gamblin Chevrolet, City of Bonners Ferry, and finally W.I. Mill where he retired in 1990. He was a volunteer fireman for the Bonners Ferry Fire Department for many years.

After retiring he put more than 5,000 miles on his bicycle, riding it out to the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge where he spent hours watching the wildlife and reading. When he turned 75 he traded his bike for an ATV and continued his trips to the refuge. He later sold the ATV and bought an electric scooter which he rode through the streets on the south hill.

Gene loved his family, fishing the Kootenai and Moyie Rivers, music, dancing, and working around the house. He will be remembered by his family and friends for his storytelling.