My relationship with Steve started as a “business friendship” but progressed and developed into a personal friendship. Steve was a true relationship person, likable in his demeanor, his attitude and his humility. Everyone found it easy to like Steve right from the start. That was my experience from the moment we met in the hotel lobby on his first trip to Austin. Steve, Boyd and I shared lunches, dinners and many hours driving the Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Nebraska markets on behalf of Kilwins. Steve was a man with a rare and attractive quality to get real about the ups and downs of life. Steve shared the details of his personal testimony, his love for his wife Terri and his family. He also was able to confront the pain of the tragic loss of his daughter Amie and talk about how God turned the deep pain of that loss into a ministry to others. Steve made himself available to other parents who were struggling to handle the loss of a child. Most of the parents he wrote to or spoke to he didn’t know but were referred to him from people who found out about his willingness to put aside his grief to minister to others. He once told me that the pain of losing a child is always there but that his relationship with God gives him strength and allows him to confront his personal pain and give himself to others. Steve told me that he believed that God was using the tragedy of his loss to bring healing and hope to others. He once told me that no one could understand the pain of losing a child other than one who had actually experienced that kind of loss. It was from that perspective that he realized and understood how God was using him to show his love to others that were grief stricken and broken. He offered to write a letter to anyone I knew in that situation who needed encouragement and support. His ministry and life illustrated the meaning of Rom. 8:28 and Isa. 61:3. It was an example to me of how God wants to take what was intended for evil and turn it to good and how He wants to turns the ashes of the painful parts of our lives and turn it into beauty.
On a business level, Steve was a joy to work with. He was capable, diligent, persistent and always willing to take a call. Steve was an incredible spokesman for Kilwins. He loved the Kilwins family and was always quick to point out the integrity of the company and how the emphasis was always to keep the franchisee’s best interest in mind. He had many stories to illustrate how the Kilwins corporate team built the business by a sincere desire to make sure that the individual store owners were successful. He would literally light up the room when he was talking about Kilwins and all that the company does to benefit every stakeholder involved, including brokers, landlords, vendors, employees, franchisees, etc. He was proud to be a part of the Kilwins team and was an inspiration to those of us that worked with him on the real estate side. Steve was a great leader, always quick to encourage and acknowledge good work, always keeping the team informed and always making us feel valued. I could go on about Steve’s effectiveness in his role with Kilwins but there many personal stories Steve shared with us, including his love for baseball. Many of you will know that Steve was a walking encyclopedia of baseball knowledge. We once had a carful of brokers driving to look at Kilwins sites. All of us thought up the most obscure questions about baseball and took turns trying to stump him with questions like “who was the winning pitcher in the 1932 World Series”? We spent the better part of an hour quizzing him and didn’t stump him once that I recall. Steve and I talked about the joy of having and loving grandkids. He shared stories and talked about going to games and dance recitals, walking them to school, etc. Steve told me of how he would write his grandkids notes and mail them notes and stickers, etc. He kept his family in mind when he traveled, collecting hotel key cards for his grandson who loved getting them. His stories inspired me to do the same for my grandkids even though we are close enough that I get to see them. Steve told me that the kids loved getting things in the mail which made an impression on me. As a result, I began mailing card and stickers to my grandkids and plan to do that more often.
We will all miss Steve very much and will look forward to seeing him again in heaven. On behalf of the Kilwins broker team, we pray for Terri and family to receive comfort and hope directly from the Father through the Holy Spirit. Let that comfort be like a thick blanket of peace over them in this hour and the coming days and weeks, in Jesus Name, Amen.