Saying Good-Bye To Steve

We were sorry to hear that our buddy Steve, long time resident and “howdy neighbor” of Upper Forest Street, has passed away. He was 80 years old and died of complications of a stroke.

When we lived on Cedar Street, we used to walk by his house all the time on our way to my mother’s or to Main Street. His place was always interesting. He had a cute little cat for many years that looked a bit like a miniature raccoon. He had a stone wall out front that he decorated with little plastic figurines. Some of them — the little pink teddy bear, for instance — were added by passers-by such as myself. I always got a kick out of his Beware of Falling Acorns sign too.

Steve was the guy with the Halloween decorations out front, and indeed, his Hallowe’en parties were legendary. It was at one of those parties that I was introduced to a game known as “Tupperware Party.” Think you know this one? Think again. To play Tupperware Party, guests were supplied with stacks of old plastic lids which we then hurled at each other frisbee-style as fast as we could. When we ran out of lids, there was a mad scramble to pick up more off the floor and keep throwing them at people for as long as our energy held out. It was hilarious, to say the least.

We’d often run into Steve working in his garage (Grape’s Garage, was it?) or sitting on his front steps. He was always good for a few minutes of chat about the weather, the news, or just how we were doing that day. In short, he was a really nice guy, laid back but friendly.

We’re very sorry to hear that he’s moved on, but to be honest, we were also surprised to hear that he was as old as he was. To many of us, Steve was perennially middle aged. He had a youthful air that never faded in the many years I knew him.

So farewell, Steve. We never knew your last name but we’ll never forget you!