I felt Steve's presence the other day as a gentle reminder to fulfill a promise I had made earlier. When Steve told me he was losing hair I decided to grow my hair long again so that I could donate it to people with cancer who might need it. Steve's hair began turning gray in his 20s. I was lucky in that my hair still does nor have much gray. Because of the lockdowns, I began working from home. Then Mom got sick and it became impossible to visit her in person. I started calling her more often, though, maybe three to four times per week. Finally I got to visit Mom in a nursing facility but I had to keep six feet from her. I was not allowed to hug or kiss her. She saw my hair, though, and told me she wanted it cut. I promised her that I would get it cut, but I still had a half inch longer to make it 12 inches. By the time I was ready to get it cut, Mom had died. 

My wife has a hairdresser friend who said she knew how to take care of it. She started braiding it so that the hair would stay together. I told the hairdresser that she was helping me to fulfill two promises that day. The first was to cut my hair for Mom and the second was to find a home for that hair with a kid who was suffering from hair loss. We put the hair in a plastic bag and it sat for a while until Steve's reminder.

I wrote a story to accompany the hair. I wrote about growing up as a Navy brat and moving around a lot. I wrote about leaving the US in December, 1967 and returning in 1970 to a country that had changed very much. I wrote about Mom seeing how girls would look at us with short hair before allowing us to grow our hair longer like the other kids. I wrote that it was my lucky hair because it had not turned gray and I wished luck for the kid who received my hair. I sent a check for a donation to accompany the hair and I did it in Steve's name. Thank you Maggie's Wigs 4 Kids in Michigan for accepting my hair donation in Steve's name.

I worked with Steve at Northern Telecom in San Diego. When everything was chaotic, Steve was always calm and cool and reassuring. He could always bring a smile to my face. We considered ourselves twins because we were born on the same day, same year! Every year, since we found out we shared the same birthday, we would exchange birthday greetings. That is what I set out to do today but found he had passed. What a great loss. I loved seeing all the pictures of Steve, this is a wonderful tribute that was made in his honor.
with deepest sympathy,
teri

Thanks Lucy for the trip down memory lane. Who could forget the ant's in the water bed. We did have fun, raising kids, lots of dinners, tacos, lobster on New Years eve and not just the cobbler but Steve's specialty, Cream Puffs. He mastered those. Thanks for being part of our lives, feels like forever ago. Wishing you and your hubby a safe and happy holiday. Love always, Janet

Steve,
I remember meeting you when I moved to San Diego back in 1972. Living in Mira Mesa, we all had to take a school bus to Linda Vista. You were Pat, Dave and Rick's big brother. Tall, slim, long hair and on the quiet side. Sitting around, listening to music, and contemplating the world's direction.

You could crack a joke with just a smile on your face.

I remember when you got back from Alaska visiting Pat. So much so, I wrote the story you told me about how you almost died in the Alaskan Bush when you went out on horseback by yourself. Ahh, but it wasn't your time yet.

You met Janet shortly afterwards and got married. We were traveling in different circles by then. But when my husband at the time and I were condo hunting, we found one that met our needs. I remember when we moved in and met our "new" neighbors. I was delighted it was you and Janet. We really had some good times after that, You and Janet had just had Andrea and i had just given birth to Adam. Friday and Saturday nights we didn't need to hire a babysitter. We just went across the hall to play cards, barbeque a trout you caught fishing, and Janet and I perfected making blueberry cobbler and topping it off with vanilla ice cream. We had many a good laugh.

I'll never forget the night you guys woke up being bitten by red ants that had somehow crawled up the inside wall between our condos. Our bedrooms shared the same wall and we heard all types of banging going on. We just thought you were having a good time! The following night, it was us banging around our room being bitten by red ants! You had sprayed the wall with ant killer and they just came over to us!

When I went through a divorce you both were there for me and my kids. I always enjoyed my time with you and Janet. You were family just like when we were teenagers.

Our kids grew up together for several years until you all moved to Oregon. Whenever I spoke to Pat or Dave i always asked about you guys and was glad to hear you were doing well.

The last time I saw you was when your dad passed. It was good to catch up with you and Janet. You hadn't changed a bit except your hair was a little shorter! Still had your dry sense of humor and your mustache.

I was sad to hear about your illness but prayed they would be able to help you. Your shining light will continue to be bright through your children, the love you shared with Janet, and the memories we all hold dear of you.

RIP my friend until we meet again...

Kay, YOU raised great children. You were the best mom and I wish I could give you lots of hugs right now. I miss you, tell David and Alyssa hi. I'll be calling you on Sunday morning....Janet

When I was growing up I always wanted to be a mother and I was blessed with four great children. Steve was my oldest of four. Bill and I were married on the 4th of July , 1953 and Steve was born 11 months and 5 days later. We celebrated our first anniversary as very proud parents. He was only 17 months old when his brother Rick was born and he was so thrilled to have a baby brother. Steve would tell people that Rick was his baby and was so thoughtful when it came to helping me to take care of them. Steve was so responsible when it came to being a big brother for all of the children as they came along. He was just a little over 3 1/2 when David was born. When David was only 5 days old Bill had to leave for OCS. Bill told Steve that whenever his father was away Steve would be the man of the house. He would help the others with putting on their pajamas for bed each night and making sure that they brushed their teeth. All of his brothers and sister always looked up to him.    Growing up Steve had a great ear for music. If he was anywhere near a piano He would try to pick out a song that he heard, and was usually very successful. Steve excelled in just about anything he tried. I have always been very proud of him and always will be.
I loved him dearly and will always. He liked being the first do something but was a very private person. Steve went up to Alaska to visit his Sister Pat for a few months and loved his trip. When he came back he starting dating Janet for a while and soon were married. They are a terrific couple and I loved Janet from the start. Steve and Janet had Jeff and then Andrea in the first few years of marriage. Ten years later they were blessed with Jessica. He was so proud of his family and loved them all dearly. Steve and Janet celebrated their 40th Anniversary this year. GOD BLESS YOU STEVE you have so many of us that loved and will always miss you.  Mom

Steve, I always enjoyed our conversations when our families would get together. You were intelligent, funny and always interested in how things were going. You will be missed by everyone you touched in this life. I am sorry our paths crossed so sparingly over the years, but I will always have great memories of the times we shared. You leave behind a very loving family that will all miss you greatly. May your rest in peace Uncle Steve.

My older brother, my best friend, my mentor, my champion. Steve taught me how to tie my shoes, took spankings for me, walked me three quarters of a mile to school when I started kindergarten at age four. He showed me where to find the frogs and polliwogs in the creek on the way back home, too. He showed me useful things, like how to pull the drawers out in the kitchen and use them as a step ladder to get cookies from the cookie jar, how to put a book in your pants when Mom was coming after us for a spanking and watching her laugh between spanks. Steve shared his demolition derby car with me and taught me how to put it back together when it came apart. He showed me how to turn on a transistor radio and find "Monster Mash." A member of the Virginia State Pop Warner Championship team that never allowed a score against them and ended their run in a zero to zero tie with the state champions from Alabama. A member of the city championship team in San Diego who played in the Mother Goose Bowl that beat a team from Texas.

Steve taught me to appreciate music and he was one of the earliest fans of The Beatles. There were four kids and we all picked our Beatle. Steve picked Paul, I picked John, Patty picked Ringo and David picked George. He was always so rock solid that I hardly noticed what a sensitive guy Steve really was. A merit badge shy of an Eagle Scout, we camped and hiked together in the Boy Scouts. We shared great times together and when we moved from one place to another I never felt lonely with Steve around, We shared our friends and introduced each other to the new people we would meet in our travels growing up. Every time I hear "You and Me and Rain On the Roof" I think back to our time on Guam hiding under the rain sheds for five or ten minutes until the rain passed and the ground dried. The waterfalls, the reefs that dropped down to the Marianas Trench, the jungles, the desert southwest with the mesas, canyons and deserts and the Virginia woods were ours to hike, run and explore together.

I remember standing in line behind Steve for my One-A-Day multivitamin and Steve explaining to me that one day we wouldn't need to eat food because we would get all the nourishment we would need in a pill. He could tell me anything and I would believe him because I trusted him that much. I remember thinking how much I would miss food. Dad gave us all pet names, Steve was Sam and sometimes Slim. I was Fatman because I was the bomb. Patty was Crew Cut because of the day she spilled a bowl of spaghetti over her head and ran outside naked as a young girl and David was The Runt, because he was the youngest.

Being a teenager can be trying enough, but being a teenage military kid was even tougher. I never considered growing up how tough it would have been for Steve Unlike me, he was the trailblazer. He suffered the slights alone and endured the hurts without complaint. He paved the way and made my life easier by being the first. After barely moving into our new home in San Diego after Dad retired from the Navy, Steve moved out to find his own home and build his new life. 

Over the years, we saw less and less of each other. Steve took on his new role as husband and father and provider while I was still trying to figure myself out in college. Like Dad, Steve was a natural born genius. In school he used to test out at the top half of the top one percent. School was too easy for him. He could read the material one time and ace his tests while I would memorize the chapter and struggle to get my Cs. Like all the really gifted people I have met, Steve had good garbage collection. He could keep what was important and drop the rest. I, on the other hand, remembered everything - everything including the garbage that Steve threw away. When we occasionally would speak on the phone, he would ask me "Why do you bring that up. I hardly remember it". For me it was all fresh like it happened just the other day. It was harder for me to live in the moment. Steve was more focused. But oh the memories I have. 

Steve got his Associates degree in Philosophy on his way toward getting his Bachelor in Arts in Business Administration and one of the philosophy classes we talked about was Death and Dying. When I first learned about Steve's illness I could not stop thinking about what must have been running through his head. I would have gone nuts. He handled it with dignity and grace, though. Always private, I respected Steve's space in preparing for his exit, but I never gave up hope that he could overcome it.

I have read enough about physics to know that that there is no telling what comes after death, because everything we see and hear and touch and taste are assembled in our minds and are formed from our reactions to electromagnetic vibrations. Maybe our lives are just sitting on a memory bank somewhere.  Steve knew more about semiconductors than I will ever know. He planned out and designed the semiconductor factories. Now God has chosen Steve to assist him in the great semiconductor factory in the sky. He is not gone as long as we keep him in our thoughts. As Jesus told us "Wherever two or more people are gathered in my name, there will I be." Matthew 18:20. Steve is never really gone while he remains in our thoughts.

God bless you Steve. You have been a good brother to me. Until we meet again,

Your little brother,

Rick (Fatman)

To my big brother Steve, to have you as my oldest brother has been a blessing. Growing up all over the USA has been a great way to have good friends everywhere we went. I felt very safe and loved by all my brothers even now though, we are all in different places. It seems that getting together is only a call away but we are never in a hurry or have it fit in our days. I think just thinking of you has been my way of visiting you I wish we could have visited more. Maybe that would have made it so I knew your family more. I still can and will give it my best try. Janet has been your true blessing. A very big picture, I was given of you and me as kids, with my bowl of food on my head is on one of my house doors You look like my big brother who didn't do it but had watched it happen Must have been funny. I'm so glad came to Chisana, here back in the 70s and stayed for quite awhile. I was so happy my big brother came to share my experience with me Thanks Steve until we meet again. Know, I love you and always will   Pat

My sweet cousin. My memories are us as kids. So excited whenever we could get together. Friendships instantly picked up from the time before. Running, exploring, looking for adventure. Making our own. Laughing hard. Aunt KK’s pancakes. Envious and awed at the stacks you could eat. Your instant smile. I am so thankful you were my cousin, are my cousin. Always and forever. I love you. Tell my mama, daddy and Chuck hi. I know mama welcomed you with a big hug.

Love you pops, I've got all the memories I could ask for; bike riding, playing catch, waking up early to go fishing, all the holidays, coming out to my art show last year, silly dad jokes, the bond over music and horror movies, I could go on and on. I'm forever grateful for all of it. I hope you're resting easy and I'll continue to carry your practicality, work ethic, goofiness, and quiet compassion with me forever.
'Til we meet again, say hello to Alex Trebek and pet Misty for me.

Growing up, I always knew that I could count on my dad. I don’t think I could’ve asked for a better one. He was so loving and caring. He was at every single softball game, dance recital, school event. He encouraged me to follow my passions and believed in me every step of the way. He loved talking to me about Business. I’ve learned so much from him and will continue following in his footsteps for the rest of my life. I love you dad ❤️

Very emotional right now, thank you for allowing me to share my life with you. We were a great team. We were each other's half. I miss my other half.