- Date Of Birth: February 19, 1943
- Date Of Death: January 22, 2017
- State: Idaho
Wesley David Steele – February 19, 1943 to January 22, 2017
On the evening of January 22, 2017 Wesley passed away mid-move in a crushing game of solitaire as he relaxed after an evening of music practice for the upcoming performance of “True Story”. We are comforted knowing that this is exactly as he would have wished it, quick, painless, and without a long drawn out illness nor loss of any faculties. Wesley was just a month shy of his 74th birthday. He wanted his tombstone to say “Here lies a man who knew too much” which is just perfect for him!
Wesley Steele was born in Cedar Rapids, IA on February 19, 1943 to Wesley Woodrow Steele and Frances Jean (Lindstrom). He was their first child and the eldest of three in the family. He was the son of a serious engineer and a witty retail manager who formed who he became: deadly serious and wickedly funny at the same time.
He graduated from Washington High School and joined the air force being stationed in arctic Michigan in the middle of one of coldest winter on record at that time. He became a pilot and took our family on many trips in small planes throughout his life.
From childhood, Wesley loved to play and listen to music, and it was a main focus in his life. He played primarily piano, bass, cello, and guitar, and any other instrument he happened to pick up. He has composed and performed in jazz, rock, and classical genres with a rich musical history that reaches back to the 1960s when he moved to San Francisco and fell in with the music scene of the time. He founded his own Band, Touchstone, and they released one album, Tarot, in 1972 which is music from the Off-Broadway play of the same name. It played at the Chelsea Theater in Brooklyn, New York during the Fall of 1970. He has played and recorded with bands with well-known artists who are household names today; TC and Jerry Garcia from The Grateful Dead and Chicken Hirsch from Country Joe and the Fish to name of a few.
Wesley was the Planning Office Supervisor of Operations at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory for 30 years before he retired in 2004 and moved to Meridian, ID from California. He found a wonderful community of friends who became his second family and gave him the life he always wanted full of music and time on his motorcycle exploring new roads. He is a member of the Boise Valley Riders and was a Road Captain who planned and lead many trips for the Club.
Wesley was preceded in death by both of his parents, Wesley Steele and Frances Steele. He is survived by his wife Kim Steele of Nampa, ID; his brother, Kenneth Steele (Judi) of Pensacola. FL; his sister, Janet Tiya Joice of Meridian, ID; his daughter Sarah Stone (Allan) of Morgan Hill, CA; his three grandchildren, Madison, Logan, and Jacob Burrington of Morgan Hill, CA; his nephew Robb Joice of Meridian, ID; his grandnephew Adam Joice of Vail, CO; and his grandnephew Connor Joice of Meridian, ID; his nephew Jeff Steele of Pensacola, FL; and his niece Stephanie Godrey (Bobby) of Pensacola, FL.
