Samuel Wallant Hale

In the early morning hours of Friday, August 28, 2026, 23-year old Samuel Wallant Hale, of Bozeman, Montana passed away at the 53.8 mile marker on US Route 191, after his truck went off the road and struck a tree.

Sam was born October 12, 2002, in Winfield Illinois, to Sarah and Kevin Hale. Samuel Wallant was named after the Jewish novelist Edward Lewis Wallant, and one of his beloved characters, Samuel Abel Kahan, from the novel, The Children at the Gate. He is survived by his parents and his two older sisters, Agnes Miller (Chris) and Sophia Olechowski (James).

Sam’s life and education spanned across the states of Illinois, New Hampshire, and Texas, finally landing in his mother’s home state of Montana in 2014, when he was 12 years old. He graduated from Petra Academy in 2021 and went on to pursue a career in the trades.

After moving so many times during his childhood, Sam was finally able to put down roots and make lasting friendships in Bozeman. He was welcomed into his tight-knit Petra class, bringing his bigger-than-life personality with him. His classmates have expressed that Sam helped make their Petra experience more beautiful.

Sam loved being a plumber’s apprentice for Williams Plumbing. At the time of his passing, Sam was studying for his journeyman plumber’s license written exam. His family had never seen him study with so much enthusiasm. He found the art and science behind plumbing fascinating, and the daily experience of figuring out solutions fulfilling and exciting. In his free time, Sam would build whatever he set his mind to, with more attention to its functionality than its appearance: a camper in the back of his car, his own bed frame for his apartment, and a wood cabin on family land. Sam had recently bought his truck and vehemently declared he would not pay any other man to work on it. He enjoyed doing his own maintenance, saying he found it meditative. Just the weekend before he died, he was very proud to have rotated his tires.

He loved working with his hands, building, drawing, and being in the dirt. As a child he would create intricate, detailed fantasy worlds from his own mind and fill sketchbooks with whimsical creatures. He could draw detailed images with no reference, create complex languages and alphabets, and command an audience through the art of theatre. In the last year of his life, he was creating his own board game: El Mundo!, which had ever-changing rules.

Sam was also known by his loud entrances, hilarious laugh, and complete honesty. A room was not complete until he stepped into it. His face could emote the biggest expressions, and he loved to make people laugh. He deeply wanted to understand the world and the people in it, and was fierce in his pursuit for discourse. He never shied away from a spirited debate.

His pursuit to know someone was always sincere. To be loved by Sam was to be seen, known, and accepted exactly as you are. He had a way of making you feel safe and at home in his generous presence. Sam always asked to know what others believed in an effort to finally know eternal truth. We are comforted by the fact that he now has the answers to his questions and is having the best conversations right now.

Sam and Heidi Kropp found love in 2023. While they were together, they were able to travel to Portugal, Switzerland, and Vancouver, bond over Anthony Bourdain and fabulous cuisine, and share tons of laughter. Sam was honored to help carry Heidi through the passing of her sister, Hannah, last October. The times they carried each other were times that Sam cherished deeply.

One of the very first friendships Sam made in Bozeman, and perhaps his most cherished, was with his dear friend, Nik Thompson. Nik has been a rock in Sam’s life since they met, and as a last act of brotherhood, Nik was one of the three men who worked together to hand dig Sam’s grave on the family land he loved so much. Nik’s father, Peter Thompson, and Sam’s brother-in- law, James, shared in this sacrificial labor of love.

We are so thankful we were given almost 24 years with this unbelievably beautiful soul, and all of our lives are so much better because of him.

A memorial service will be held at Peace of Christ Community Church located at 120 S. Grand, Bozeman,  at 11am on Saturday, September 12, 2026. Family and friends are welcome to attend.