Clifford Gordon Steckman

When I was 5 my dad, a navy man stationed out of Bremerton, moved my mom and kid brother and me from our brownstone in New York City to Seattle. Our 40's-era Craftsman home was perched on the brow of North Hill looking down on Des Moines WA. The Steckmans ... Herb and Ruth and Jeri and Cliff ... lived two doors over. Cliff was a huge part of my life for a lot of years, the older kid in the neighborhood who was always getting us involved in some adventure or another, everything from treehouses to staging hydroplane races with our 50's-era balloon-tire bike pulling little wooden (and poorly executed) replicas of Miss Thriftway and Miss Bardahl. I last saw Cliff at a memorial gathering for Herb some years ago. May God bless his family with as many rose-tinted memories of Cliff as I have :)

Cliff was a good neighbor and always willing yo lend a helping hand. He made my world a better place.

Cliff was a good neighbor and always willing to lend a helping hand. He made my world a better place.

I will always love you, Dad. Please find a way to send me your hugs; I miss them so much.

I will always love you, Dad. Please find a way to send me your hugs, I miss them so much.

Rest in peace little brother