John W. Steinke

John W. Steinke, 83, of St. Joseph, passed away on Saturday, October 17, 2009 at his home. A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at Zion United Church of Christ, 9100 3rd St.Baroda, MI with Rev. Christopher Noffke officiating. Burial with military honors will follow at Riverview Cemetery St. Joseph. Visitation with the family will be held on Monday from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home; 2650 Niles Rd.,   St. Joseph, MI. Memorials may be made to Lakeland Hospice, Zion United Church of Christ in Baroda, or Trinity Lutheran Church of St. Joseph. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book on line may do so at "http://www.starks-menchinger.com" John was born on October 13, 1926 in Menasha, WI to Gustav and Ruth (Rutkoskie) Steinke. He graduated from St. Joseph High School in 1944, where he played football and was basketball captain. John served his country in the U.S. Army during WWII in the Phillipines. He graduated from Michigan State University in 1951 with a B.S. in Mathematics. He married the former Ruth Kretchman in St. Joseph MI on September 11, 1949. They recently celebrated 60 years of marriage with a family dinner. Together they raised a son, Bill and two daughters, Kathy and Jill. He began his career as a call center manager at Whirlpool Corp. and after holding various positions in control and research areas, he retired after 37 years. John joined the Board of Directors of Whirlpool Federal Credit Union in 1969. He was recently honored for his 40 years of continued leadership service to the credit union community including local, state and regional roles. He served with distinction as chairman of the board of what is now the United Federal Credit Union, a position he held for the past 14 years. He also was a past director of the Michigan Credit Union League and former chairman of the Southwest Chapter of Credit Unions. He was past president of the Lakeshore Board of Education for 10 years and served for 12 years on the board. He was also a Berrien County 4-H leader for 8 years and he was a founding member Berrien County 4-H Foundation. He was involved with AARP Tax Counseling and Preparation for many years. John enjoyed golfing, gardening, sailing and the outdoors. Most of all, John took an avid interest in the lives and activities of his grandchildren and cherished spending time with them. John is survived by his wife of 60 years, Ruth (Kretchman) Steinke; Son, William E. "Bill" (Leslie Sunell) Steinke of Stevensville, Kathy R. (Michael Vincent) Steinke of St. Joseph, Jill A. (James Evans) Steinke of Colorado Springs, CO; a brother, James F. Steinke, and sisters, Agnes J. Steinke and Carolyn A. Ziemer, all of St. Joseph; grand-children, Tobiah S. Vincent, Matthew S. Evans and John Christopher Evans and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by a sister, Cathryn on April 29, 2008 and his parents, Gustav and Ruth.