Wayne was born on April 15, 1947, in Holland, MI to Bernard and Charlotte Sneller. After high school, Wayne went on to attend Hope College. In 1967, Wayne met and married the love of his life, Marlene. They were married for 58 wonderful years and built a loving family. Wayne was a lifelong plumber and eventually started his own plumbing business, Riverman Plumbing. He was a legend in Saugatuck and West Michigan for starting a benefit to save the New Richmond Bridge. Wayne loved to do many things in life, including fishing in the Kalamazoo River, having fun with family and friends at “Ole Log Inn” aka Riverman’s Bar, and loved providing opportunities for kids to learn the value of great work ethics. Wayne was the type of guy that would give you the shirt off his back even if he didn’t have one to give. Wayne will be missed by many.
Wayne is survived by: his wife, Marlene Sneller; children, Wendy (Keith) Skelton and Rebecca Carter; 8 grandchildren; and 2 great grandchildren.
Wayne was preceded by: his parents, Bernard and Charlotte Sneller; and his brother, Delwyn Sneller.
A Celebration of Life is being planned for next spring.
I am sorry to hear about Wayne’s passing. As a young college student working for Arnett’s Plumbing in the summers, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work with Wayne on a daily basis. The skills, applications, and creative problem solving I learned from Wayne and Jerry, were amazing. I still use many of those lessons today in my professional life. The “Legendary” status used to describe The Riverman is well deserved. He was a skilled plumber plumber, an accomplished musician, and just an outstanding individual to all he crossed paths with. My condolences to Marlene and the family.