NORWALK, CONN Richard Whitney Steeg of Norwalk, age 74, died peacefully on December 25, 2010 at Norwalk Hospital, in the company of loved ones, after a long illness. He was born on December 9, 1936 in Indianapolis, IN to the late Kathryn Hart Steeg and Ernest Reiman Steeg. Richard (Dick) attended Shortridge H.S. in Indianapolis, and graduated from Kentucky Military Institute in 1955. He earned a bachelor's degree in 1959 from Wabash College in Crawfordsville, IN. This was followed by six years of military service in the U.S. Army. It was during his Wabash years that he began dating Karen Jane Lee. They married in 1960 and moved to New York City following their wedding. They moved to Norwalk in 1963 when Dick worked for Golf Digest Magazine, which was at that time based in Norwalk. Karen and Dick celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary this past June, surrounded by cherished family and friends. Throughout the years, Dick was very active in the community, serving on the Norwalk Board of Education from 1972 to 1975, and as Chairman in 1974. He was a member, Board of Directors, of Norwalk Economic Opportunity Now (NEON) in 1974-75. In recent years, he served as treasurer for the First District Water Dept. From 1984 to 2000, Dick was President and Owner of The Coolidge Company, Inc., a direct marketing consulting firm with offices in New York City, San Diego and Toronto. Prior to that, he was the Circulation Director for Ziff-Davis Publishing. Dick was a guest lecturer at NYU, SUNY, Radcliffe, and many direct marketing seminars and conferences. He received a Silver Apple Award from the Direct Marketing Club of New York for outstanding contribution to the direct marketing community. Dick is survived by his wife, Karen, his son Evan W. Steeg of Kingston, Ontario, his daughter Barbara L. Steeg of Columbus, Ohio, his granddaughter Nadia E. Abudi of Chicago, his older brother Ted Steeg of New York City, his niece Amy Steeg Mullen of Hamden, CT and a great-niece and -nephew. He is pre-deceased by his older brother, Reiman Steeg who was killed in Normandy serving his country in WWII. Dick will be remembered for his commitment to family and community and for his wry wit. A brief memorial service will be held at Hoyt-Cognetta Funeral Home at 5 East Wall Street in Norwalk, at 6 pm on Thursday December 30. Afterwards a gathering of friends and family will take place at The Norwalk Inn and Conference Center at 99 East Avenue, 7-9 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Richard Steeg Scholarship Fund, c/o David Troutman, Wabash College, Crawfordsville, IN 47933.
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