Fred L. Richtsmeier

Fred Lewis Richtsmeier, age 55, of Bozeman, MT passed away of natural causes at home on Sunday, August 25, 2024.

Fred Richtsmeier was born in Saint Joseph, MO on January 4, 1969. He was the son of Larry Richtsmeier and Karen Steele. The young family moved to Forest City, IA in the summer of 1969 where Fred would grow up and graduate from Forest City High School. Fred’s sister, Ann (Richtsmeier) Torkelson, would later join the family and while their parents later divorced, Fred and Ann remained a top priority in their lives.

As a young boy, Fred began learning about cars from his dad. Despite his memories of cold fingers while working on cars in the winter, he learned the skills needed to diagnosis and fix most mechanical problems and this was foundational to his later career as a parts professional. In high school, Fred was a familiar face to any customer of the local, full-service Standard Gas Station. If he was not at Standard, he was likely on the wrestling mat.

In his early twenties, Fred headed to Yellowstone National Park in his Volkswagen Beetle for a summer job. While working in the park, he loved to visit with any guest driving a Winnebago who stopped for fuel at Fishing Bridge. Fred never lacked conversation with park guests and telling them of his personal connection to Forest City and Winnebago. Fred’s love for the West resulted in him making this area his home. He and his wife (Stina Liebman) lived in Bozeman, MT and it remained his home even after they later divorced.

Those who knew Fred know he was a straight shooter, he loved spending time on his motorcycles and snowmobile, and he had a work ethic that was unmatched. Fred took pride in maximizing the life of everything he owned and even developed his sewing skills so that he could make a new motorcycle seat cover, shorten sleeves or repair broken zippers. He was known as Fred – just Fred, Little Fred, and Runt. To some, he was a son, a brother, and an uncle. To all that knew him, he was kind, intelligent, and a bit stubborn – just as any Richtsmeier should be.

Fred’s final resting place is along Brackett Creek outside of Bozeman, MT, with his father, where he enjoyed riding his motorcycles.

Fred leaves behind his mother, Karen Steele; sister, Ann (Mark) Torkelson; and nieces Madelyn and Maya Torkelson. He also leaves behind his aunt and uncle Jill and Mark Mortenson, aunt Janie Richtsmeier, and cousins Amy (Greg) Pitts, Brad (Mindy) Richtsmeier, and Jenna (Troy) Porter.

He is preceded in death by his father, Larry Richtsmeier; Uncle Fred J. Richtsmeier; grandparents Merl (Shorty) and LaVedia (Vedie) Richtsmeier, David Steele, and Elizabeth Steele.