Post Falls loses a champion
<p>Gladys Schneidmiller is presented a flag from Post Falls Police Officer Troy Moss during a veterans' memorial ceremony in 2012 at Evergreen Cemetery in Post Falls as Schneidmiller's son Gary assists. Gladys Schneidmiller, who served with the Post Falls School Board, Idaho Parent-Teacher Association, Idaho Community Foundation, Royal Neighbors of America and Kootenai Medical Center Foundation, died on Sunday night at 97.</p>
POST FALLS - Gladys Schneidmiller always had an eye on helping others.
"Mom always worried about the well-being of other people," said Gladys' son, Gary. "She was always there to help in any way she could and that manifested in a lot of different ways."
Schneidmiller, whose deep roots here included farming, assisting youth and serving on several boards, died at her home late Sunday night of natural causes. She was 97.
"It's a very sad day for Post Falls," family friend Linda Wilhelm said on Monday. "She was so humble, so giving and a true philanthropist."
A fountain and memory garden to be donated by the Schneidmiller Family Foundation will be built in Schneidmiller's memory at Evergreen Cemetery. It will be built with granite from Montana, where Schneidmiller was born.
Schneidmiller was a Post Falls School Board member for 18 years, a life member of the Idaho Parent-Teacher Association and a 4-H leader for 12 years. She was a member of the Royal Neighbors of America, the Idaho Community Foundation and was a founder and charter member of the Kootenai Medical Center Foundation.
She started a scholarship fund at Post Falls High in memory of her husband, Manny, who was a farmer and World War II veteran.
"Gladys was a beautiful woman inside and out," Duane Jacklin wrote in an email. "She was always generous and giving, continually donating to the community."
Coeur d'Alene city administrator Jim Hammond, who formerly served as Post Falls mayor and city administrator and as a state legislator, said Schneidmiller was on the Post Falls School Board in 1973 when he was hired as a teacher.
"She and Manny built a small farm into one of the largest businesses in the area," Hammond said. "Though they had accumulated great wealth, they were always very humble, never forgetting their roots. It was difficult for Gladys to look over the fields they had farmed for so many years, now filled with homes. She talked of growing homes now instead of crops."
Schneidmiller kept books for the family farm and land businesses and, before that, the Post Falls Highway District, a local irrigation district and school district. All were volunteer positions.
Two years ago, Schneidmiller was recognized with the Heritage Award by the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce. Her and Manny's land donations for economic development efforts included the site that Kootenai Health owns in Post Falls and the Harper's (now Kimball Office) property.
Jerry Keane, Post Falls school superintendent, said he considered Schneidmiller a mentor and role model with her quiet leadership skills.
"She was an advocate for everything Post Falls," Keane said. "She had one foot in Post Falls' past and one foot in the future. She will be missed, but her life will continue to be felt for many generations."