Walter D. Buehler

1926 - 2018

May 13, 2018 Walter Douglas Buehler age 91 of Sacramento passed away peacefully at his residence on Mother's Day, Sunday May 13, 2018 at 1:30pm. He was surrounded by his loving family. He was born on December 12, 1926 to parents Walter Anthony & Ethel Blanche (Farling) Buehler in Santa Monica. At age 10 his family moved to Sacramento. He attended C. K. McClatchy High School where he was a Colonel in the ROTC program. Upon graduation in 1944 he enlisted in the US Army. He remained active until the end of World War II. Much of his Army career was spent at various colleges around the country working towards an electrical engineering degree as peripheral support of a major Army project. Once the war ended, he was able to graduate with honors in 1948, at the age of 21, with a B.S. in Architectural Engineering from Washington State University. He subsequently attended graduate school at Stanford University but left early after meeting his first wife Eleanor Buehler. They returned to Sacramento so that he could join his father at their new structural engineering firm Buehler & Buehler. He registered as a Structural Engineer in 1952 and later served as President until he retired in 1987. After he retired and in between travels he worked as an employee for his former employee and friend Bill for Bevier Structural Engineering. Additionally he later worked for his longtime colleague and friend Jim Clark, of Clark Pacific as a consultant. Buehler & Buehler Structural Engineers continues today as one of the leading structural engineering firm in the Sacramento area. Walt began working with the construction industry in Sacramento and the Central Valley. He was involved in the structural engineering for many prominent Sacramento buildings in the region, including the Sacramento Metropolitan Airport, the Sacramento Convention Center, American River College, Sacramento Main Telephone Building, Lincoln Plaza, the new Folsom Prison, Sacramento Community Center and 300 schools throughout California. Walt served as President of both the Structural Engineers Association of Central California (1960) and the Structural Engineers Association of California (1961). He was a member of the City Planning Commission from 1961 to 1968. Walt and his late wife Carol were major donors to the building of the visitor's center at UC Davis which was named after his father Walter Anthony Buehler plus other campus projects he worked on. They also established a scholarship fund for UC Davis Department of Engineering. In 1998, he and his wife Joan contributed funds to St. Paul's Preparatory Academy in Phoenix AZ for a physics and Chemistry Laboratory. As a philanthropist Walt was recognized by the City of Sacramento as philanthropist of the year. He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Margaret Elizabeth (Buehler) Fox and second wife Carol (Knox) Buehler. He is survived by his loving wife of 22 years and high school sweetheart, Joan (Orr) Grenz Buehler, 5 children James Buehler (Lydia) of Philadelphia; Marilyn Buehler of Sacramento; David Buehler (JoAnne) of Fair Oaks; Janet Buehler of Sacramento; and Alan Buehler (Kate); 3 Step children Rick Grenz (Loree) of McMinnville, OR; Laurie Grenz (Robin Pepper) of Carmichael; and Michael McMahan (Phoebe) of Folsom; 11 treasured grandchildren, (Philip, Lauren, Branch, Guthrie, Colleen (Buehler) Steinberg, Kelsey, Kerrie, Marvin and Viola Buehler; Lynne and Lily McMahan), nephews and nieces. Walt was an avid reader. He enjoyed reading history, maps/ geography, traveling, and playing cards every night and was an enthusiastic sports fan. Walt enjoyed spending time with his family at the ocean and Sierra foothills. He was a man of integrity and had a tremendous sense of humor. He loved his family dearly. He will be cherished in our memory and will be greatly missed. Our sincere thank you to Ateca (Heather) Qarau for her special care of Walt throughout these past 10 years, and Michael Bogitini. Friends and family members are invited to attend the Celebration on Life service on Saturday, June 2, 2018 at 11:00 am at the Fremont Presbyterian Church, 5770 Carlson Drive, Sacramento, CA 95819. The graveside service will be private. In Lieu of flowers or other remembrances to honor Walter, the family requests that the donations be made to the Walter D. Buehler Scholarship Fund (04441) online at www.give.ucdavis.edu, pledge your support, or make a gift with a credit card by calling (530) 754-4438. By mail send a check made out to: UC Davis Foundation. UC Davis Gift Administration, 202 Consteau Place, Suite 185. Davis, CA 95618. And, The Salvation Army, Del Oro Division Headquarters, 3755 North Freeway Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95834.