J. Stephen Price

Price J. Stephen Price (Gino) died on November 26, 2014 at St. Ann's Hospital in Westerville as a result of a heart attack. An only child, Steve was born March 3, 1949 in Columbus, Ohio to Dr. Pliny Price and Margaret (Harrigan) Price. A graduate of The Columbus Academy class of '67 and Franklin University in 1972, Steve excelled in sports especially rugby, football and soccer. His career path included work as a farrier, beer tender and manager of the gift shop at Anheuser Busch. When his mother became ill in '89, Steve made the decision to devote every day of the next 19 years to caring for his parents until their deaths. 1995 brought a major turning point in Steve's life when 'he met a girl' -- Jill Levy whom he married in 1996, embarking the couple on the greatest love story ever. A second turning point came in 2004 with the landing of the Spirit and Curiosity rovers on Mars, which reignited Steve's interest in Cosmology and the Universe. He soon became a fixture at OSU's Astronomy Department where he marveled at the newest discoveries related to black holes, dark matter and stellar populations. In 2009 Steve and Jill established an endowment fund in the name of Steve's parents in the Center for Cosmology and Astro-Particle Physics at OSU. The Center now sponsors a yearly award named The Price Prize, which recognizes quality graduate research in CCAPP science for scholars around the world. Steve was well-known to his friends for his outsized generosity, great sense of humor, enormous empathy and welcoming smile for everyone he met. Steve is survived by his best friend and wife, Jill; his mother-in-law and bridge partner, Sally Levy; his cousins, Peggy Spellman, Larry Price, Bill (Paula) Smith, Ken (Linda) Rhodes, Cecil (Lois) Rhodes; his two brothers-in-law, Tom (Sally) Levy and RK Levy; his special niece, Katrina (Eric) Zidel; his nieces and nephews and great nieces. He also leaves behind many close friends and his cherished pets. He is preceded in death by his parents, his cousins Dean Price Lloyd Rhodes and Sam Smith; his father-in-law Robert K Levy and niece Christy Levy Peters. His "Celebration of Life" will be held at The Grange Audubon Center (505 W. Whittier St.) on Sunday, December 7 from 2-5 p.m. Contributions may be made to Dr. Pliny A. and Margaret H. Price Endowment Fund at CCAPP c/o The Ohio State University Foundation, 1480 West Lane Ave., Columbus, OH 43221