In Loving Memory.....

This is a little write up my mom did when she and I couldn't sleep.

In Loving Memory of Terry Galen Steele

MUSIC

Terry often talked about the many great people that he used to play his banjo with.  He said he could live without his legs, and would be okay as long as he had his hands and could play.  He said he "sang with his fingers."

He admired his uncle Vic who taught him to play the fiddle.

Terry was offered a job with the Ozark Opry in 1976, but turned it down.  He felt traveling was no way to raise kids, and he had his eye on Mary.

There are many memories of going to Columbia, MO yearly to watch different bluegrass groups play every half hour for 3 days.

Tyne was 10 days old when she went to her first jam session.

Tiffini was 2 when Terry and John Purk went to various bluegrass festivals.  Tiffini wanted nothing to do with John, so he bribed her with M&M's.  She then would sit on his lap.  Years later, when visiting Mary's family, Mary's brother Paul was teasing Tiffini and said, "you don't know who I am, do you?"
After thinking a little while, she responded, "John Purk?"  Mary realized she needed to spend more time with her family!

FAMILY

The girls grew up with music.  Tyne started violin lessons at age 3.  By the time she graduated high school she could play 9 instruments, including, (but not limited to), piano, bassoon, clarinet, violin,  and contrabass clarinet.  Tyne was an All State performer on bassoon, and plays with the Quad City Symphony in her spare time.  Tyne is also an accomplished vocalist, specializing in harmonizing with her sister, Tiffini.  They've performed together in variety shows, for funerals and for weddings.

Tiffini inherited her singing voice from the Steele side, and also played piano, trumpet, french horn and mellophone.  Tiffini was an All State vocalist in high school and the youngest in the high school to obtain an outstanding performer award in singing.  She went on to win the senior choral award, and had several roles in musicals starting in middle school.  She was Marian in the Music Man, Maria in the Sound of Music, the narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat, and was asked to join the cast of Big River as a soloist.  With nothing but bluegrass played in the Steele household, Tiffini in her rebellious teen years asked, "why couldn't I have been born into a classical family?"  The family had a good laugh.

Alexis chose the theatrical route.  She was in many high school, college, and community plays, and went on to join the Brownville Theater Company during college.  She also lived in Pennsylvania for a few months, working at a Renaissance festival.  Since then she has had small roles in local movies, including playing a zombie in the upcoming film Collapse.  Alexis now lives in Chicago, continuing to nurture the acting bug.  When Alexis was born, Terry's comment after the announcement of "it's a girl" was "look how long her fingers are!  She'll play the violin or banjo."  Alexis has shown interest in learning to play the mandolin, and will hopefully continue to blossom musically.

Education was important to Terry.  He wanted his girls to have more opportunities than he had.  Terry did not get a degree and he did not want that for his girls.  After high school, Terry went to Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman University) for one year.

WORK

Work was very important to Terry.  He was proud of the fact that he helped pour the concrete for the Robintech building in Grinnell.  His employee number was 1.  He stayed with this building throughout his career in plastics.  He did everything from blending the PVC powder to extruding to calibrating dies.  He worked his way up from foreman to tool and die manager.

Terry was able to travel for work, going to Austria to purchase equipment 3 different times.  Terry loved history and was able to tour a concentration camp while in Austria.

He worked with Henry Corbel from France and Henry proposed a challenge to Terry.  If he could get a certain percent of bubbles out of the product, he would give him half a bottle of wine.  Terry exceeded the challenge, and received a full bottle of wine.  At that time Terry didn't drink, but that's not what was important to him.  He loved a challenge.

Terry also worked with Horst Eigruber from Germany and understood the language enough to communicate and defend his knowledge when discussions were held in German.

Terry was told by another Austrian co-worker, "you must move to Austria, you can learn nothing more from the United States."

ANIMALS

Terry loved horses.  The family raised and showed Appaloosa's and POA's.

Terry shared his love of dogs and hunting with his grandpa, "Booger" Steele.  Tyne was 5 months old when she went on her first coon hunt.

Terry loved fishing with his uncle Jerry. One year Terry was in big trouble when he talked Jerry intro going fishing on his anniversary.  Jerry called his wife and said they were going to be a little late.  Betty, his wife, responded, "you'd better be catching a lot of fish!!"  They definitely did.

Terry built a barn for the horses.  After the shell was constructed, he designed and built the stalls and doors himself.

KNOWLEDGE AND SHENANIGANS

Terry loved the challenge of computers.  He crashed the home computer 4 times just to see what he could get away with.  He read each computer manual from front to back.  He loved to read and he loved to learn.  He never simply read a book, he memorized them with frightening accuracy.

Terry had his friend and right hand man at work, Rich Wedmore, play Santa for the girls.  One year, when the girls were getting a little older, Tyne went to Terry and whispered, "I know what Santa drives.  It's a red truck."  Tyne was then strongly warned that she was not to tell her sisters.

Terry was a practical joker at work, and if he saw someone with plumber's crack, he'd make a point of pouring some coffee down the offending butt crack.

RANDOM MEMORIES

Terry was an amazing physical specimen in his day, flexible and strong.  He was proficient in some gymnastics and could easily pull off the iron cross.  He was a skilled martial artist as well, which definitely impressed Mary.

On many many many occasions, he used his knowledge and strength to save each member of his family in one way or another.  Whether it was knocking a bull off its feet when it threatened his young daughter, or protecting his sister from an abusive boyfriend, even after taking a shovel to the face, Terry was always there to help and was fiercely protective.