May 23, 1948 ~ Nov. 16, 2024
Robert Steven ‘Steve’ Brubaker, 76, of Morganton, North Carolina, went home to be with the Lord, Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024. Steve was a beloved husband and father who lived out his faith and was an example of Christ’s love for all of us. As a gifted writer, speaker, and storyteller, he delighted in sharing God’s word with family, friends, and others along his life’s journey.
Born in Kingman, Kansas, on May 23, 1948, he was the son of Robert Dean Brubaker and Maryellen (Closson) Brubaker. In 1950, the family moved to Meeker, Colorado, where Steve spent his childhood years. His love of farming and agriculture was formed at an early age, spending summers working on his Uncle Clarence Closson’s farm in Kingman, Kansas. Those early experiences contributed to the man Steve would become. He graduated from Meeker High School in 1966.
He attended the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, and graduated from Kansas State University, College of Agriculture, Manhattan, Kansas, with a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy – Soil Science, in 1970. During his agricultural career, he attended Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management – Executive Programs, Evanston, Illinois, in 1996 and 1998.
Following graduation, Steve worked for International Harvester, Chicago, Illinois. He had the opportunity to join his uncle on the family farm in Kansas for several years, then moved to Cortez, Colorado, to work with his father in the family’s agricultural dealership. It was during this time, and due to his previous lay leadership and ministry-related activities with youth while in Kansas and Colorado, he answered a calling to accept a position as Youth Director at Trinity United Methodist Church, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Steve married Myra Jones on May 21, 1983, and became a father to her son, Bryan. The family then moved to Cortez, Colorado, where he rejoined his family’s dealership. In 1986, he began his 30 plus years of service with John Deere Financial, Manager eBusiness, eventually relocating to Salt Lake City, Utah; Fresno, California; Madison, Wisconsin; and Des Moines, Iowa. Steve and his wife Myra were members of Lutheran Church of Hope, W. Des Moines, Iowa. Following retirement in 2016, he and his family moved to Morganton, North Carolina.
Those left to cherish his memory are his wife, Myra Brubaker, and son, Bryan Brubaker, Morganton, North Carolina; brother, Mike and Sue Brubaker, Hayward, Wisconsin; brother, Chris and Sandy Brubaker, Grand Junction, Colorado; brother, Corey and Tina Brubaker, Lincoln, Nebraska; and sister, Tricia and Brian MacInnes, Albany, Oregon; and many nieces, nephews, relatives, and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Bob and Maryellen Brubaker, Grand Junction, Colorado.
Steve’s faith was the foundation of his life, and he will be deeply missed by all. He has found his Heavenly reward, and is now where we all aspire to be, eternally – “In His Grip”. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” – Deut. 6:5.
Donations can be made to Freedom Farm Ministries, online, or P.O. Box 153, Boone, NC 28618.
