Walter W. Rohm

Walter William Rohm and his identical twin brother, John Henry, were born on April 11, 1928 joining their older sister, Mildred Louise (Wood), in a small house on a chicken ranch in Van Nuys, CA. The family moved to Orange, CA in 1929 where they grew up, being raised by his German immigrant parents, John G. and Marie Rohm.

Walter was an industrious and affable child. He and John worked to earn money from a very young age selling magazines and vegetables grown in the family garden. The twins were irresistible to the neighbors resulting in Walter’s lifelong inclination for hard work. As youngsters, he and John sold newspapers on Saturdays on opposite corners of the Orange Plaza competing to sell the most papers. When they attended Orange Union High School, they delivered Western Union Telegrams from the Orange Train Depot during lunch and famously were never late to their afternoon classes. He held many jobs including helping his parents in their store in Orange, by selling reconditioned stoves while delivering and installing them on weekends.

Walter attended St. John’s Lutheran Church and School in Orange. After graduating from Orange Union High School in 1945, he attended Woodbury College in Los Angeles until enlisting in the U.S. Navy on his 18th birthday. After he was honorably discharged, Walter completed his studies at Woodbury College in 1949 with a degree in Business Administration.

Walter began his 46-year banking career in 1950 as a teller with Bank of America, moving to First National Bank of Orange in 1952 in the escrow and trust department. Walter continued on to become Branch Assistant Manager, Branch Manager and was eventually promoted to the head office as commercial and real estate loan officer. When Wells Fargo purchased the bank in 1978, Walter moved to Valencia Bank in Fullerton, specializing in construction lending. In 1985 he became Senior Vice President at California City Bank which was later purchased by Commerce Bank of Newport Beach. In 1993, Walter became Vice President at Frontier Bank in Buena Park until his retirement in 1996.

Walter did not talk much about his faith - he simply lived it by example.

On October 28, 1951, Walter married Joan Marie (nee Dierker) at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Orange. Walter and Joan were married for 70 years and had four children; Roger (Janet), Sandra Even (Perry), Diana Asplund (Joe) and Nancy Frazier (John). He was sincerely admired by his ten grandchildren, five great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

His family adored him and treasure the many happy times they had together playing ping pong, volleyball, croquet and enjoying Walter’s famous tacos, therefore, dubbing him “The Taco King.”

Walter and Joan enjoyed cruising with friends and traveling to many destinations worldwide. Walter also enjoyed swimming, gardening and playing golf. He was legendary in his family for his amazing ability to perform cannon ball dives into the pool well into his 80's.

Throughout his life, Walter faithfully served several churches in Orange County and Palm Desert, volunteering with numerous community organizations, non-profit boards and committees, sharing his talents for business and leadership. He was a charter member of The Kiwanis Club of Orange, assisting in organizing it in 1954 and serving as president in 1961.

Over the years, Walter and Joan lived in Orange and Villa Park, then relocated to Palm Desert in 1997, where they enjoyed desert living for 25 years. They returned to Orange County to be near their family in May, 2022.

Walter’s memorial service will be held on Saturday, July 30, 2022 in the Legacy Chapel at Fairhaven Cemetery in Santa Ana at 10 am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Walter's name to Desert Springs Church at 43-435 Monterey Avenue, Palm Desert, CA 92260.