This is the story of Walter Breuning.  He had quite an amazing life and he lived right here in Great Falls, Montana.

Walter lived until the age of 114.  That's incredible!  And at the time of his death he was the oldest living man.  Could you imagine living that long?  Walter was born in Melrose, Minnesota.  At the age of five his family moved to South Dakota.  His parents passed away at much younger ages,  50 and 46.

In 1910 at the age of 14,  he dropped out of school and went to work at a bakery making $2.50  a week.  When he turned 17 he went to work for the Great Northern Railway and he worked there for more than fifty years.  In 1918 he moved to Montana where he would remain the rest of his life.

He was married twice.  Both wives passed away.  One in 1957 and the other in 1975.  In 1979 Walter retired and moved into what is now the Rainbow Assisted living in Great Falls.  He would spend the next 32 years living there.

I have to tell you,  I have seen interviews with this guy when he was 112 and he was still as sharp as a tack.

He smoked cigars until 1999.  He told reporters he only quit because they were getting too darn expensive.  He would often tell the story about his grandfather sharing his experiences  during the American Civil War.  He also remembers the day President William McKinley was shot.  He says that was the first time he ever got a haircut.

Can you imagine all the things he live through?  WW1, WW2, the depression, the first space flight, the landing on the moon, Korea, Vietnam, and so much more.

Other than his parents, his siblings lived a long time  too.  one lived to 100.

He died peacefully in his sleep at 3:30pm on April 14, 2011.  He is still one of the top five longest living Americans ever.

His advice,  keep your body and mind active.  What  a life!

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