The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Obituaries
PUBLISHED: January 24, 2008
Catherine Canfield Steger
Chelsea
Catherine Canfield Steger of Chelsea died Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2007 at the Chelsea Hospital. She was 97.
She had been a resident of the Chelsea Retirement Community for over 11 years. She was born in 1910 in Chelsea, the daughter of Howard and Ellen (Wilson) Canfield. Catherine graduated from St. Mary School and after the sudden death of her father, went to work becoming the sole support for her mother and herself. She worked in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan in the alumni and athletic offices, and then took a job at the Federal Screw Works in Chelsea. An office romance with the boy who lived around the corner began and she married William Arnold Steger in June 1938.
Catherine was a "bloomer girl" ñ the required uniform for playing high school basketball, and she also championed women's advancement for her daughter and granddaughters. She was always an avid sports fan joining her husband in following University of Michigan football and basketball teams as well as the Detroit Tigers. She volunteered in many church and community activities including the St. Mary Church Altar Society and the Girl Scouts, and she worked for many years as an election official. She will be remembered for her intelligence, modesty, grace, loyalty, kindness and determination. She cherished her family and was always the first to offer assistance or a donation from her hidden cash fund to help one of her children or grandchildren. Catherine dared to dream and helped her family set personal goals beyond what might have been expected often providing encouragement behind the scenes. Catherine was a life-long member of St. Mary Catholic Church, and will also be remembered for her devout faith as well as her quiet but steadfast commitment to those who mattered most, her family and her friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents Howard and Ellen, a brother Charles and a sister Margaret, her beloved husband, William Arnold Steger (1981), and her son, Robert Augustus Steger (2005). Surviving Catherine are her daughter Susan Margaret and son-in-law Richard Anders Johnson, her daughter-in-law Julie Steger and four grandchildren Kristin Elizabeth Johnson, Britt Alison Johnson, Robert Augustus Steger II and Michael James Steger.
Catherine's family would like to extend its heartfelt gratitude to all who have provided so much support to her through the years with a special thanks to Jo Bennett and Rose Perlongo who faithfully visited her each week bringing church and community news, to long- time friends John and Madeline Keusch, to the doctors, nurses and staff at Chelsea Hospital for their excellent care, and to her many friends and the staff at the Chelsea Retirement Community who provided a warm and caring environment for her last years.
A Funeral Mass was held Friday, Jan. 18, at Saint Mary Catholic Church, Chelsea, with burial at Mt. Olivet Cemetery, Chelsea. The family received friends at Cole Funeral Chapel Thursday. Memorial contributions may be made to Saint Mary Catholic Church.
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