Walter Witten Wise Jr.

Walter Witten Wise Jr., 74, who served as General President of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers from 2011 to 2015, died peacefully at his home in Hendersonville, North Carolina on Thursday, February 12, 2026.

Born November 5, 1951, in Bluefield, West Virginia, and raised in South Pasadena, California, Walt returned to Virginia in 1969 to study engineering at Virginia Tech. For his first summer break, he had planned to return to California when a friend invited him to join him working with the Iron Workers. "After the first day, I knew that's what I wanted to do for the rest of my life." It was a decision he never regretted.

Walter began his career as an ironworker in 1973 and completed his apprenticeship with Local 697 in 1977. After working extensively in the field, both locally and as a boomer, he was elected Recording Secretary in 1981 and later Business Manager of Local 697 in 1989. Appointed General Organizer in 1997, he went on to serve as President of the Mid-Atlantic District Council, General Vice President, General Treasurer, and General Secretary. In 2011, he was unanimously elected to serve as the 12th General President of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers.

During his tenure as General President, Walt launched the international "See Something! Say Something!" campaign. The goal of the initiative, he said, was to let all ironworkers know "You are your brother's and sister's keeper and if you're not willing to say something to them on the job when they're being unsafe, what are you going to say to their loved ones? Our number one obligation to our members is to make sure they get home safely." He was proud that this campaign contributed to a steady decline in ironworker fatalities.

He also served as a vice-president of the AFL-CIO, on the Building and Construction Trades Department Governing Board of Presidents, and on the executive council of the AFL-CIO, serving on many of its committees. Upon his retirement, the AFL-CIO noted: The Iron Workers are recognized as one of the safest, most knowledgeable and hardest-working skilled labor forces in North America, and that's a testament, in part, to Wise's drive, passion and focus."

During his tenure as General President of the Iron Workers, he also chaired the Pharmaceutical Industry Labor-Management Association (PILMA. He also served as co-chair of the Ironworkers Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust and as treasurer of the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans. As General President Emeritus, he was elected in 2018 to the National Academy of Construction, which noted he was a "Progressive labor leader known for his commitment to worker safety and to partnering with contractors and clients to build successful labor-management teams."

In a ceremony at the Ellis Island National Monument in 2011, Walter received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor from the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations "In recognition and appreciation of outstanding qualities, both personally and professionally, which honor America while preserving the richness of their ethnic and cultural heritage," adding he had "shown a dedication to their country through distinguished community service … and is justly commended for their effort."

After his retirement, Walter and his wife, Liz, sold their house in Northern Virginia and traveled the United States and Canada in their Jaguar convertible for 18 months, backpacking and enjoying both national parks and nice resorts. In 2020, they settled into their new home in Hendersonville, North Carolina, where Walter pursued his love of hiking, gardening, travel, and cooking. He was very proud to have won first place in his neighborhood community's Chili Cookoff. Walt also loved to play golf with his buddies in the neighborhood and his ironworker colleagues.

He was the beloved son of the late Josephine Lotito Wise and Walter Witten Wise Sr. In addition to his wife, Walter is survived by his daughter, Lauren and her husband, Bobby Shkolnikov, and grandchildren Griffin and Joceyln Shkolnikov, all of Durham, North Carolina; sister Lisa M. Pease and her husband, David, of Broomfield, Colorado; nieces Alexis (AJ) David and Jennifer (Scott) Wilson, all of Colorado; and several cousins.

Walt had no greater love than his family – a loose term he used to describe everyone near and dear to him, including the many, many friends from high school, college, all phases of his ironworker career, in-laws and friends he acquired late in life, and the thousands of Iron Worker brothers and sisters whose safety he made his top priority.

Funeral arrangements are private and under the direction of Church Street Funeral & Cremation in Hendersonville. There will be a celebration of Walter's life at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Walter's memory to the John Lyons Sr. Scholarship Foundation, Iron Workers International, 1750 New York Avenue, NW 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20006.