STEYER, Richard Paul

Richard Paul Steyer, 95, of Liberty Hill, Texas, went to his heavenly home on Friday, March 31, 2017. He was born on March 30, 1922, to Rev. Edward H. and Amalia Steyer of Lexington, Texas. The family soon moved to Cisco, Texas, where Richard spent the remainder of his youth, graduating from Cisco High School. Joining the U. S. Army Air Corps in 1942, he spent eight years on active duty as a B-26 mechanic and crew chief. Two of those years he was stationed in post-war Germany where his airplane was used in photographing and mapping of the country. After returning home, he met and married the love of his life, Arlee Haedge, in 1951. After his military service, he became a machinist, working for Temco in Grand Prairie, Texas. Richard, Arlee and daughter Rachel moved from Irving to Liberty Hill in 1965 to help Arlee’s parents on their farm, and Richard went to work as a machinist for the University of Texas Applied Research Laboratories, putting in 20 years before retiring in 1985. He and Arlee were together 55 happy years before her passing in 2006. They were charter members of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Cedar Park. In his later years, Richard was a member of Mission Liberty Hill Lutheran Church.

Richard was a life-long “tinkerer,” never happier than when he was crafting something from metal, working on an engine, or building something with his brothers. He loved his family, his friends, and his Savior, and was in turn loved by all those around him.

Richard was preceded in death by his parents, infant son, beloved wife Arlee Steyer, brothers Vernon Steyer and Edward Steyer, sister Lorna Steyer, three nephews and one niece. He is survived by daughter Rachel Austin and husband, John; granddaughter Barbara Austin, all of Liberty Hill; 4 nieces, 6 nephews, and many friends. The family would like to express special thanks to Richard’s caregivers over the past several years, especially Gloria Celedon, Beatrice Reyes, and Marisabel Gutierrez, who cared for him in the last months of his life and made it possible for him to continue living in the home that he loved.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday, April 5, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Beck Funeral Home, 1700 Whitestone, Cedar Park, Texas. An outdoor service will be held Thursday, April 6, at 1:00 p.m. at 415 County Road 213, Liberty Hill. Interment will follow at Austin Memorial Park. For those desiring, memorial contributions may be made to the Mission Liberty Hill Lutheran Church Building Fund.

Published in Austin American-Statesman from Apr. 5 to Apr. 6, 2017

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