Leon Earl Steege

Leon E. Steege, age 75, of Yankton, South Dakota, died unexpectedly on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, at his home in Yankton.

A memorial service will be at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at River City Assembly of God Church in Yankton, South Dakota, with Pastor Spencer Keroff. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the memorial service on Tuesday at the church. Arrangements are under the direction of the Wintz & Ray Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Yankton.

Leon E. Steege was born November 8, 1949, in Oelwein, Iowa, to Leonhard and Eleanor (Burdick) Steege. He grew up in Oelwein and graduated from Oelwein High School. He was married to Linda L. Lagg, and together had seven children: Kristopher, Monica, Nancy, Jon, Phil, Thomas, and Catherine.

Leon worked various jobs in Iowa until he became an engineer for the railroad. He had accumulated more than a half century of service in the rail industry. Leon started with Watco on the Yellowstone Valley Railroad in 2011 and joined the KO in 2013. He also assisted many locations over the years as a Go-Teamer, sharing his experience with many others. Over the years Leon had worked for many short line railroads including Chicago, Northwestern, Nebraska Central, and BNSF. He also moved to several states due to the railroad including Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana and Oklahoma.

Leon was a member of River City Assembly of God in Yankton. He was always very active in a Church community no matter where he lived. He had a passion for the railroad which expanded into collecting model trains and books. He loved sightseeing and taking pictures along the way. He videotaped everything and loved making family home movies. He always had a smile on his face and was well known for his dad jokes.

Survivors include his seven children: Kristopher (Michelle) Steege of Speedway, Indiana; Monica Steege of Tripp, South Dakota; Nancy (Shawn) Schaefer of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Jon (Robyn) Steege of Gilbert, Arizona; Phil Steege of Armour, South Dakota; Thomas Steege of Sioux Falls and Catherine (Robert) Konrad of Tripp; 16 grandchildren; seven great grandchildren; and sister, Lois Steege of Hastings on Hudson, New York.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Leonhard and Eleanor Steege; and granddaughter Angel Holzbauer.