Wayne Steinberg

There once was a young man who made an arduous journey with his sister to America. Opportunity was the goal that tore their roots from Germany and sailed them to the eastern shores of the United States. They said their goodbyes in Chicago and Henry Steinberg eventually made his way to eastern South Dakota where he married and bought a farm. Six lives began with the union of Henry and Lina (Dixon), the gift we celebrate today is their second to the youngest son, Wayne Andrew Steinberg born February 28, 1927. If there were an ideal life for a little boy living on a farm, Wayne had that life. He had considerable room to run, a barn to play in, 4 brothers and a sister to share the chores involving care of the goats, milk cows, horses, puppies, cats and chickens. Considerable teasing took place around one chicken in particular. "Speck" was his mother's favorite and the boys were quick to ask if Speck should be one of the chickens fried for Sunday dinner. Of course it would never be, as she laid her daily egg behind the kitchen cookstove. During his young life Wayne absorbed so much knowledge about how to garden, make cheese, smoke sausage and hams, his father brought volumes of knowledge and skills with him and patiently imparted that unto his children. Alas, tragedy struck and a life of hard work, laughter and nonsense came to an end. Wayne was only 9 years old when his father passed away. When he was 11 his meager belongings were waiting on the porch when he came home from school one day. Little brother, Jack and he made do by selling cardboard boxes and buying at the "day-old" bakery. Wayne knew his only way out was through education, it was his driving force. So, in lieu of room and board he milked cows for a local farmer. He got his High School education and in no time at all his country called him into service to protect and defend. Even though World War II was drawing to an end he still had the opportunity to march the full length of Italy and back down again. Wayne became a boiler expert and that skill was the gateway to lead him through his working career. When he returned from the war he started the boilers for the LaunDry Cleaners in Rapid City, South Dakota. There he met his life partner, Carolyn Marie Arends. The two stole away and married on December 17, 1949. Then on New Year's Day of 1950 and in search of greener pastures, they fought their way through a blizzard to Casper, Wyoming. Wayne was never a quitter but after weighing the positives and headaches of owning his own laundry he closed the doors of Economy Laundry and Dry Cleaners located on the Sand Bar and went to work for Standard Oil Refinery. It wasn't long and his skill set was sought out to start up an electrical power plant near Glenrock. Wayne spent countless hours studying at the dining room table and mastered each stair tread to advancement at the Dave Johnston Power Plant. Operations Shift Supervisor, Wayne Steinberg retired on April 1, 1989. Talents abounded in this man and probably the single one that gave his family and friends the most joy was his engineering and building of an "A" frame cabin in the mountains. He crafted knives, jewelry, powder horns, rifles, furniture and other items too numerous to name. To many, he was considered a master craftsman. With a little tinkering there was nothing he couldn't fix including little girls scraped knees and bumped heads. Children and animals gravitated toward him like nails to a magnet and they could always count on a kind word, a hug or a scratch behind the ear. On February 6th, the heavens opened up and angels escorted Wayne to eternal peace. The earth is going to be a lonesome place without him. He is survived by his two daughters, Patricia Miller and Jane Jeffs, her husband John, as well as granddaughters, Amanda Jones, Leetta MacMillan, her husband Jed and Tomi West. The lineage continues with his numerous great grandchildren whose hearts hurt with his absence. The family asks in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Glenrock Senior Citizen Center in his name.

Service

Thursday, February 14, 2019 2:00pm

Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery (Evansville)

80 Veterans Road

EVANSVILLE, WY 82636

Visitation

Thursday, February 14, 2019 12:00pm - 1:30pm

Bustard's Funeral Home (Casper)

600 CY Avenue

CASPER, WY 82601

Interment

Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery

80 Veterans Road

EVANSVILLE, WY 82636