Stephen Edward Press

I worked with Steve at Maxim. He was a great guy, super smart, and generous with his time. He never had a discouraging word for anyone. My he rest in peace and his family find some solace and comfort from the admiration that his peers placed upon him.

Ben and I so enjoyed Stephen - our neighbor and book group member.
What a lovely, talented fellow.

Louise Jones

A life well lived. Ordinary, but somehow elusive. As ordinary as the sunrise, or a birthday, or the last stroke of sandpaper across the finished product. Ordinary and yet worthy of note; indeed worthy of celebration.
We all basked in Stephen’s life well lived. What a blessing for us as friends to have been the recipients of Stephen’s generous good nature. But, let’s not stop at recounting our own benefit. Let’s look a little more closely and see Stephen’s unfailing loyalty to Harry and Sylvia, his utter devotion to Sara, and his profound commitment to Linda. These are the signposts of a life well lived. All very ordinary, accomplished in Stephen’s very extra-ordinary way.
All of us aspire toward a life well lived. Stephen made it. He carried the water past the finish line spilling only a few drops. We thank you, good friend, for showing us the way. May you continue your journey in peace, and may you know you will be in our hearts as often as the sunrise.

I met Linda and Stephen early 1980. Being a newcomer to Central Oregon, I was so fortunate to have those two take me under their wings and to remain a central part of my friendship circle to this day.
Stephen always did it right...from health habits, (I mean who really follows doctor's orders to stretch every day?) to building amazing furniture and boats, to knowing when a pal needs a bit of cheer, to a perfectly annoying hum as he worked.
Thankfully, he lived life to the absolute fullest, but darn it seems too soon to have it end. Buddy, I just need one more chance to finally beat you at cribbage.
You contributed so much to our lives; you will be sorely missed.

From the day we were introduced to them, Stephen and Linda always offered our family a warm welcome, friendship and kindness. As is true of Linda, Stephen had a way with kids, and our kids, Ava and Aidan, benefitted greatly from their attention and affection. We were reminiscing the other day about fond memories. I thought of the "blueberry incident" in Joseph, OR, when Aidan, still a toddler, ate copious amounts of berries –with expected consequences (!) – simply because it was so delightful to have Stephen feed them to him. Ava recalled the singsong melody of Stephen's deep voice when he'd greet us upon our return to the US every summer: "Hiiii, Avaaaa!" Ken and I recalled the many hours he put into expertly retiling our entryway in Multnomah. We will miss Stephen's gentle humor, wry wit and sharp mind. Our hearts go out to Linda and Sara, and the other family members he leaves behind.

Dawn, Ken, Ava & Aidan

What a wonderful man. He was easy to talk to and a great engineer. He helped me in many ways, both personally and professionally. He will be sorely missed.

Jon and I met Stephen and Linda in a Spanish class 12 or 13 years ago - hit it off immediately and have enjoyed their friendship ever since. Trips to the Sisters Folk Festival, beach gatherings, birthday dinners and this last year numerous masked, socially distanced chats in our front yards. Stephen’s joie de vivre, his wit, his upbeat attitude during darker times helped us stay sane!
His unexpected death was a shock - we will miss him terribly, but we have many good memories.

So sad, too soon, but what wonderful memories.

I worked with Steve at Maxim. He was a great Design engineer with a calming influence. These were good traits to have, working for a high tech Silicon Valley company like Maxim! Schedules were paramount and the designs were demanding. I think Steve's crowning achievement might have been leading a team of designers to introduce a new, never been done before, digital radio receiver integrated circuit (IC) for the Japanese market. The schedule was ridiculously tight, but Steve managed to corral the engineers and design a large piece of it himself. He actually introduced the IC ahead of schedule and it was a huge success for our Design group and the company.

Steve was also a part of the Monday, Wednesday, Friday lunchtime running crew. In fact he was most often the one to push us out the door. Always a good time to blow off steam and reset our sanity. I miss those times greatly.

I'm so glad Steve was able to retire super early and spend precious time with Linda and Sara. That is a truly a blessing. And I'm thankful God blessed us with Steve, an amazing human being.

He was ten years my senior as an engineer, knew more than me, respected what I did know, and was kind. When he came to me with a problem I may have caused, he was gracious and helpful. He was happy more than usual. I remember his deep voice that could be heard around the office and one that I will miss. He was a wonderful human being.