Terry Theodore Steen
March 10, 1947 - April 12, 2024
Terry Theodore Steen passed away on April 12, 2024, at the Heath Center at Franklin Park in Denver, Colorado, at the age of 77. After a long battle with cancer, he passed comfortably in peace with family by his side.
Terry was born on March 10, 1947, in Des Moines, Iowa, to Richard T. and Charlotte B. Steen, the first of four children. He attended elementary school in Des Moines. His family then moved to Urbandale, Iowa, where he attended Urbandale Junior High and High School. Terry loved sports and was an athlete in high school. He was a pitcher on the baseball team, a quarterback for the football team, and participated in track and wrestling. In addition to sports, he was proudly the president of his senior class. Terry had many friends and was an excellent student.
Terry attended one year of college at the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire before enlisting in the United States Army. After his basic and paratrooper training in Georgia, he was deployed to Vietnam with the 173 rd Airborne Brigade in August of 1967. Before leaving for Vietnam, he married Connie Sheary (Norton) in Urbandale, Iowa, on July 28, 1967. After serving one year in Vietnam, Terry was stationed at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. It was then discovered that the Army recruiter had made an error in his enlistment papers and checked the 2-year box instead of the 3-year box Terry had requested. So much to his surprise, Terry was honorably discharged from the Army one year earlier than he expected. In the fall of 1969, he and Connie moved to Norman, Oklahoma where he enrolled at the University of Oklahoma and completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics.
After Terry’s graduation from college in 1972, he and Connie moved to Santa Barbara, California where Terry worked for the Santa Barbara Research Center. In October 1975, Terry and Connie moved to Boulder, Colorado, where Terry took training in Denver to be an investment broker and received his license. This would be his lifetime career.
There were three beautiful children born to this marriage - Ryan, Tara, and Lindsay. After Terry and Connie divorced in 1994, another beautiful child - Caroline (Cari) was born to Terry and Diane Aberle. Terry was proud of all his children and grandchildren, and they meant the world to him.
Terry was baptized into Christ in February of 1980. He was an avid sports fan, especially for the Oklahoma Sooners, and enjoyed watching sports of all kinds. He loved playing golf, cooking gourmet meals, and playing fetch with his dogs. All of these things were very special and important to Terry.
Terry is survived by his four children, Ryan Steen (Anna) of Bainbridge Island, Washington, Tara Lewis (Brad) of The Woodlands, Texas, Lindsay Steen (Michael Williamson) of Brooklyn, New York, and Caroline McCleary (Trevor) of Broomfield, Colorado; nine grandchildren, Thomas and Luna Steen, Kaleigh Symonds, Austin and Sydney Lewis, Cora and Petra Williamson; two step-grandchildren, Nathan and Alexis Williamson; and one great-grandchild, Annabelle Franks. Also surviving Terry are his brother, Richard (Rick) Steen, sister, Sharon Steen, brother, Mark (Buzz) Steen, and many nieces and nephews.
Terry impacted many lives and had a big heart. In addition to his physical health challenges, he struggled with his mental health for many years. However, in the last few months of his life, he found an eternal sense of peace with the many burdens he carried and had struggled to overcome during his lifetime. He displayed a compassionate and loving spirit that was transformative both for himself and for others. He is now at peace and no longer in pain. He is loved and will be dearly missed.