Steve W. Babos' Obituary
Steve was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up on Clover Ave. He was the youngest of five children. His early years were spent playing sports in his neighborhood. He stayed close with many of the friends from his neighborhood throughout his life. One of those friends ended up with early onset Alzheimer’s disease. Steve and his other childhood friend John went to his house every Wednesday for 10 years to sit with him while his wife ran errands. This is just one story that represents who Steve was as a friend and how dedicated he was to the people he cared about.
After high school, Steve joined the Air Force and upon discharge went to work for Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. He worked there for 25 years and had many interesting experiences while going into people’s homes to collect their payments. One story involved a pet monkey opening a door and releasing a charging German Shepherd! After that excitement and many more, Steve went to work as a mailer for the Cleveland Plain Dealer; where he worked until he retired.
Steve and his wife June were married for 61 years. They lived most of their life on North Court in Cleveland, Ohio. In their early years they enjoyed getting together with friends and later in life they enjoyed reading and seeing their grandchildren. Life was exciting when Steve was around. He was a big personality and had a great sense of humor. Steve liked to play jokes on his wife often. One Christmas he and his friend bought each of their wives the same pantsuit and encouraged them to wear them to the same lunch. June and her friend realized when taking off their coats that they were wearing the same outfit! June appreciated his sense of humor…most of the time.
Steve was a lifelong Browns and Indians fan. He was at the 1964 National Football League Championship Game at the Cleveland Stadium. In fact, June went into labor and had to wait for him to get home from the game to go to the hospital. He was an avid reader, who read extensively about all aspects of World War II and the early days of boxing and baseball.
Steve and June had three daughters: Wendy, Nicolette and Juliet. Steve was a strict, but also fun, father and a hard worker who encouraged and paid for his three daughters to go to college. A favorite family vacation spot was Mohican State Park. Steve would organize multiple families to join in the fun for their annual trip. Steve was always very thrifty but on family vacations very generous. Mohican continues to be a cherished place for the entire family.
Steve loved being a grandfather and spending time with his grandchildren, Daniel, Mark, Jordan, Adam, Steven, Clay, Rachel and Rebecca. He entertained them for hours with his made-up games. They usually involved a prize of $1.00 for some form of a ball bouncing off an object and into a pail. He was very clever at keeping small kids busy. He enjoyed attending and supporting many of their activities, and taking them on outings.
Steve loved his wife and family and enjoyed cooking for everyone on holidays or weekends. He would deliver meals to help his daughters when their children were young. His spelling was really bad and his labels of “spigitti” were humorous but always appreciated.
Steve passed away at the age of 87 from COVID-19 on November 30, 2020.
The family suggests that donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, stjude.org/donate.
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