December 20, 1951 – January 27, 2025

Stephen Gary Balog was born in 1951 in Youngstown OH. He lost his dad while he was still very young. He grew up in a loving home with his mom Helen, 2 sisters Arlene and Karen and brother Ron. In his early 20s, he and his brother Ron moved out to California. Steve went to work for an Aerospace company first in manufacturing and then as a service engineer. He lived on the beach in Oxnard Shores where he met his wife, Annette.
Steve and Annette were married in 1985 and had their son Nicolas in 1988. In 1991, they moved to Delaware where Annette worked for a pharmaceutical company and Steve sold industrial tools and finished up his Bachelor’s degree. In 1997, the family moved to Colorado. After the move, Steve went into real-estate. While Annette often travelled, Steve stayed home with Nic and the two of them built an incredibly close relationship
The family loved the mountains, skiing in the winter, hiking and playing golf in the summer. Steve and Annette bought a condo in Keystone and when Nic graduated high school and went to college, they moved to Keystone full time. Steve sold concrete and Annette continued in healthcare. Steve always supported and encouraged Annette in her career, including joining her for a stint in Asia.
Steve was a kind, joyful, loving husband, father and friend. In 2013, Nicolas got married to Allie and Steve retired. In 2014, he became an “Opa” (grandfather) first Cameron and then Carter became the greatest joy in his life. He loved spending time with his grandsons’ playing ball, Lego, games, building forts. When Nic and Allie returned from the Eastern Plains and settled in Greeley, Steve looked for and bought a townhouse in Windsor (Annette came along) to be closer to the grandkids and family.
Steve was passionate about sports. When he was younger, he was an avid softball player. Later he took up golf and enjoyed watching sports especially football and baseball and specifically, no matter where we lived, he was a loyal, often frustrated, Cleveland sports fan.
He loved travelling with Annette and whenever possible the whole Family. There were annual trips to Hawaii to play golf, lounge on the beach and eat lots of Ahi, Phoenix for Spring Training, Southern California to stay at the beach and visit Annette’s parents and of course his “boys’ trips” with Ron and sometimes Nic, to Las Vegas.
Everyone touched by Steve, will remember his caring, positive, joyful and sometimes just a bit quirky personality. Our family has been so abundantly blessed and we will miss him dearly.