Hans Reifer, 89

Beloved father, brother, friend and Silver Valley community member, Hans Reifer passed of natural causes at the age of 89 on May 4, 2021, in Pinehurst, Idaho.

Born in Vienna, Austria, in 1931, Hans immigrated with his parents and sister to the United States in 1941, where the family settled in New York City before moving west to Los Angeles. Hans attended Bronx High School of Science, Purdue University, the University of California at Berkeley and Harvard Business School. He served in the U.S. Army from 1953 to 1955, followed by a long career in new product development and management in the food industry at companies such as Pillsbury, Lipton and Carnation Company, and later as director of his own Los Angeles-based marketing consulting firm, Reifer & Associates.

A former Berkeley varsity soccer player and avid outdoorsman, Hans’ lifelong passion was skiing and teaching others to ski. After working as a weekend ski instructor for much of his adult life, he retired to the Silver Valley, where he was an ownership partner of Lookout Pass from 1999 to 2017. At Lookout, he focused his ski instruction expertise on helping other seniors tap into the joy of skiing — and often served popcorn in the bar. In 2016, Hans was honored by the Professional Ski Instructors of America for 50 years of ski instruction service.

Hans treasured the lovely landscapes and friendly people of North Idaho, and relished spending the last 14 years of his life here. Hans was also an avid angler, and loved casting a fly into the waters of the Idaho Panhandle.

Beloved by family and many friends, Hans is survived by his sister, Mary Weissmann of Los Angeles; a son; daughter Susan and her husband, Alexander Ryan; and daughter Diane.

His children would like to give special thanks to the kind, caring and hardworking team at Pacifica Senior Living in Pinehurst, to Kayla Sharp, and to the excellent nurses and CNAs of Auburn Crest Hospice.

Hans was laid to rest in a private ceremony at Mount Sinai Hollywood Hills in Southern California. As per his wishes, there will be no additional memorial celebration.

In lieu of flowers or other commemorations, please consider honoring Hans with a donation made in his memory to the nonprofit Share Winter Foundation at sharewinterfoundation.org/HansReifer, which helps 45,000 young people gain access to snowsports every year.