Stephen GATES

GATES Stephen Kennedy Gates, age 27, lately of Durham, NC died early Saturday, October 4, the victim of a hit-and-run auto accident on Interstate 40 near his home. Visitation will be Tuesday, October 7, at Haines Lineberry Funeral Home, 515 N. Elm St., Greensboro NC, from 6 to 9 P.M. Additional visitation will precede services, Wednesday, October, 8, 5-7 P.M. at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, at Horse Pen Creek and New Garden Roads in Greensboro. Celebration of the Mass of Resurrection will begin at 7 P.M. at the church. Stephen was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, moving with his family to Greensboro at the age of five. From the sports-loving roots planted there by his Grandfather, Stephen blossomed into a committed and ever-optimistic fan of his beloved Reds and Bengals, and bloomed later into a passionate and professional sports broadcaster. Stephen attended Guilford Primary and Middle schools, and graduated in 1994 from Western Guilford High scool. His baptism as a true Tarheel took place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He graduated with a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication in 1998, and continued the broadcasting career begun there as student intern at WCHL. At the time of his death, Stephen was immersed in the broadcasting career he loved, on the path to the goal declared at age seven: to someday be ""the radio voice of the Cincinnati Reds.' Working for Learfield Communications, he was the on-air broadcaster for the UNC women's basketball and men's baseball teams, the side-line reporter for Tarheel football broadcasts, and the scoreboard and post-game radio host for men's basketball at Carolina. He also hosted Countdown to Kick-off, the live pre-game radio show broadcast from the Chapel Hill campus, as well as the Coach Silvia Hatchell Women's Basketball Show, and the live ACC Today call-in show. In addition to his varied broadcasting roles, Stephen was Director of Media Relations for both the Northast and the Central Professional baseball leagues for non-affiliated minor league teams in the U.S. and Canada. He delighted in a wide range of duties that included press relations, producing media guides, compiling league statistics, expediting player contract sales to Major League Baseball, and even hosting game tours by the Russian National Team. His first love remained baseball broadcasting, with meticulous preparation and professional commitment. Stephen was the radio voice of the Burlington (NC) Indians. He aimed always at what he called ""describing the game and its setting to bring the listener into the event,' not just ""calling the plays, naming the players, and tossing around clich's,' like the Hall of Fame broadcasters he studied and emulated. Stephen was preceded in death by his fraternal grandmother, Carolyn Gates Ammann, and his maternal grandparents, Joe and Betty Kennedy, all of Cincinnati. He is survived by his parents, George and Pat Gates of Greensboro, his younger broher Kevin, now working and residing at the University of Nevada-Reno, and his sister Kelley, who teaches and lives in Chicago. He also leaves behind a large and joyful family of aunts, uncles and cousins in the Gates, Lunne, Wilson, Webster and Atkinson families of the Cincinnati, Dayton and Seattle areas. Tax deductible donations in Stephen's memory may be sent to: The Stephen Kennedy Gates Memorial Scholarship Fund, School of Journalism and Mass Communication UNC-Chapel Hill, Campus Box 3365, Chapel Hill, NC 27599.