In Respect for Nelson Steele.....

From Indy Runners Web-Page: Early Saturday morning, June 7th, 2003, Nelson collapsed prior to a run at Eagle Creek Park and never regained consciousness. The incident came completely without warning. Nelson was standing at the north entrance of the park, talking with friends and waiting for everyone to arrive, when he fell to the ground. Friends and bystanders started CPR immediately and continued until medics from Pike Township arrived. He was then taken to St. Vincent Hospital on 86th street where his death was confirmed to relatives and friends.
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Nelson will truly be missed. He was the kind of person that when you met him, he gave you a good warm feeling inside as he always greeted you with a smile and an almost adolescent, mischievous chuckle!! He reminded me of wise, caring grandfather, who might raise his eyebrow, but not his voice. And he had a sense of humor that put you at ease. In fact, he reminded me of the tall/lanky Fred MacMurray engineer/father character (Steve Douglas) in the 1960's TV sitcom, My Three Sons. He was a dedicated community volunteer & leader, who was very unpretentious, very approachable, and a good listner. He could be very professional in the shirt and tie look, but be just as comfortable in a running t-shirt. He knew how to keep life balanced and in perspective, and didn't take life too seriously. He volunteered for me for 11 years at the Race Through Hoosier History. He was one of those people who after talking with him, i would wish our world had more people like him. He was somebody you could trust, laugh with, and work beside. His character was the type, he seemed to do the right thing, even when people weren't looking. I for one, am honored to have known Nelson, and am a better person for having known him. For me, Nelson was a model of how to live life to it's fullest with integrity. I will always remember and respect that about him. He was one of a kind.

Nelson was very familiar, friendly face at many community events and causes in central Indiana. As one of the founding persons of Indy Runners, the local running club in Indianapolis, he spent many early Saturday and Sunday mornings volunteerng at event finish lines. He was an annual volunteer at Sam Costa 1/2 Marathon, the Ground Hog 7, and the Race Through Hoosier History. He volunteered many years as a volunteer trainer of the Indy Runners Mini Marathon Training Program. He was a co-founder and co-owner of the Athletic Annex Running Centre. Professionally he was a VP at Butler Fariman & Seufert Consulting Engineers, where he was employed since 1966. He worked on many community projects while employed there, including the Indianapolis Greenways and the Monon Trail.

In respect, appreciation, and celebration of Nelson Steele's life,
Jeff Coates
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Nelson Steele...
He always had a smile on his face.
Even when his running was permanently slowed because of a lingering leg injury. Even when a freak cycling accident pulverized his face and landed him in the hospital. Even when his work schedule would have left men 20 years his junior steeped in exhaustion. Even when he'd been ticketed for speeding for the umpteenth time on Ind. 37 between Indianapolis and Bloomington. Even when he knew the Cubs would be World Series-less for yet another year.

Nelson Steele died suddenly on June 7. He died standing amidst a group of long-time running buddies at Eagle Creek Park, a place he loved, waiting to do what he loved most, talking with a group of people who loved him like the brother he was to everyone.

Fast or slow, veteran or neophyte, cool or nerdy, buoyant or whiney, Purdue fan or loyalist of his alma mater in Bloomington, Nelson would run with anyone, anywhere. He had run in the Boston Marathon. He founded one of the best running stores in the Midwest. He helped start the Indianapolis Corporate Challenge. He was a director of big races. He was behind the development of the Monon Trail. You wouldn't know it, though, talking to Nelson. The sport he loved - running, that is, not speeding - was never about Nelson. You did not hear him boast about what he had accomplished on the roads, although he may actually have been proud to be an alumnus of the Defensive Driving School.

Nelson listened and encouraged. He used what he had learned from the thousands of miles he ran - even those circling his basement years ago when the weather was too bad to jog outside and those he retraced in the car to find out exactly how far he'd gone - to help others.

Anyone who was around him for long was a better runner because Nelson shared something not tried or thought of.

A great conversationalist, Nelson was fascinated by people. He would strike up a dialogue with others, anytime, anywhere, out of a fascination for who they were, what they did and where they came from. Waiting to cross the street before the Chicago Marathon years ago, he began chatting with a young woman, assuming she was either a participant or spectator. Turned out she was a hooker named Betty Jean.

No one could be mad at Nelson for very long.

One year he offered to drive down on race day to the Louisville Marathon. That morning, punctual as usual, he pulled into the parking lot on the north side of Indianapolis. I threw my gear into the back seat and climbed in. Sensing his passenger was perhaps a bit petulant before the big race and not prone to much talking anyway before sunrise, Nelson said only, "Good morning."

It wasn't until we were heading down the ramp onto the interstate that he spoke again. "Better hang on," he said.

"Why?" I asked sleepily.

"I forgot about the time difference."

We laughed. Who could be mad at Nelson? And darned if he didn't get us there with minutes to spare - and no speeding ticket to boot!

Nelson had been to Boston once, and soon after suffered permanent nerve damage to a leg that inhibited his running. After that, he said to me on numerous occasions, "You ought to go run it just once to say you've done it. You never know when your life will change and you may not have the opportunity."

While I loved to run marathons, preparing for them was another story. Training for a spring marathon, especially Boston, was never high on my list of enjoyable winter activities, and thus for nearly 10 years, I never seriously thought about heading east in April.

Finally, in 1991, 10 years after first qualifying, I flew out and ran on Patriot's Day. I had met a woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. We had gotten engaged at the start of the year. Nelson again reminded me, "You ought to go run it just once to say you've done it. You never know when your life will change and you may not have the opportunity."

It was because of Nelson that I ran it.

Jenny and I got married and had two kids. I haven't run a marathon since. In fact, the only times I've run over an hour have been when I've gotten lost.

Thanks, Nelson, for all your listening, counseling, prodding and encouraging.

Thanks for getting me to Louisville in time.

And thanks for that smile.
---------- Matt Morris
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Also From Indy Runners Website: Hello, I am Bob Stiehl. That's S-T-I-E-H-L. As Nelson was so fond to say of me whenever he introduced me, "He AIN'T my brother, he's heavy". He was, of course referring to the Boys Town motto of " He ain't heavy, he's my brother". I am here as a member of the Steele/Stiehl Racing Team. Actually, Nelson and I were the only members because your last name had to be Steele or Stiehl. We just could not agree on the spelling. His team jersey had MY spelling crossed out with his spelling above it and my shirt was just the reverse.
Even though I know he did not want any one of us to make a big fuss about him when he left this earth, I know that right now he is here among all of us who have gathered out of our love for him. I hope you will all forgive me if I take a moment now to speak directly to Nelson.

Nelson, I can not believe you won't be at the park to run with us Saturday morning. You know our group has run together every Saturday of the year for over 20 years. You are ALWAYS there to greet us. I know the reason for the few times you missed our Saturday Morning Run so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I figure that the angels must have scheduled an Indy or Nascar race somewhere in Heaven featuring all your favorite drivers that have passed away. GOD didn't want you to miss it, so he called you home.

Speaking of NASCAR, since your legend on earth will always be that you absolutely loved everyone, I will promise to keep it a secret that Dale Earnhardt, Sr. would never, ever be on your Christmas card list.

I wanted to let you know that I was on to you about your "job" at Butler, Fairman. I know you never "worked" a day of your life. You loved what you were doing, the people you worked with, and the clients you met with, so much that you were NEVER going to retire. Imagine, they PAID you and they GAVE you a company car just so you could go talk to people. Didn't they realize you probably would have done that for free? Today you didn't have to drive to Bloomington or Plainfield or Noblesville or anywhere else to meet anyone. It looks like they all came here to see you.

It won't be easy to go without you to Le Peep's for breakfast after our Saturday Morning Runs. As you often said, the best reason we all got up early Saturday to run was getting to go have breakfast together afterwards. We will miss your smiling face there, but we will ALWAYS save a chair for you.

One thing I won't miss however is all your puns. Okay, I am lying. You are The Punniest, and the funniest, most clever person I have ever known. Your personal notes on birthday cards and on your contributions to St. Fred's, the Home for lost and wayward coins found by our runner's group, were priceless.

Another thing I wanted to let you know is that I have figured out the reason you had the best Marathon times of so many runners that were younger than you and had much more leg speed than you ever did. YOU HAD AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE. You were the most loving, the most caring, the most thoughtful person I have ever known or could even conjure up. You treated everyone like your best friend and nobody could possibly count all the good deeds you did for all of us that were lucky enough to know you. You put your heart in every single thing you did. The way you lived, and loved, your life, you developed the BIGGEST heart imaginable. THAT GREAT HEART was YOUR big advantage when you ran your marathons.

Nelson, losing you now, many years too early, reminds me of the saying about "it being better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all." The reason that the hurt is so deep, and the void is so huge for so many, is the love that you have given to us. I will miss you deeply every day the rest of my life, but that pain will be worth it because I know I will feel it only because I have been blessed to have had you in my life for more than 20 years.

AND, I just want you to know that WHILE I don't look forward to my own death, I know it will be much easier now that I know you and Ubie are already there and we can go for a run together.

I'll see you then.

Bob Stiehl (from the Celebration of Life Service for Nelson on June 13, 2003)
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