NASA Langley Research Center, Nasa Drive, Hampton, VA, USA
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My condolences to Stephen's family. I first met Stephen when we both studied at UVA and shared a first year dorm. The last two years we were roommates with 4 other guys (engineers and pre-meds) in a little house on Cherry Street. I was the only non-science/engineering geek in the house. I was just an accounting nerd. I regret we lost touch but was very proud of his many accomplishments and accolades. God bless and fly high Jurz!
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Stephen Leete
1996, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt Road, Greenbelt, MD, USA
I joined the Landsat 7 project, having previously worked on the CIRS instrument for the Cassini mission to Saturn. As my first assignment, I teamed up with Steve Jurczyk to provide government oversight of the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) instrument, the single instrument on Landsat 7. It was the fourth in a line of instruments, the TM-1, TM-1, ETM, and now ETM+, coming from the Santa Barbara Research Center in California. We were both in a systems engineering role, and there was also an Instrument Manager, Andy Dantzler, who is deceased (
https://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov…) The three of us worked closely together to make sure the instrument met its performance and interface requirements, and was delivered on time. We traveled to California together, and formed a good camaraderie. My first impressions of him were of tremendous energy and enthusiasm, a deep love of the space endeavor. It was clear he was on a rotation from Langley, as part of a broadening process, and was at Goddard to both contribute and to learn things that would help him be a better leader later on, probably in the NASA Executive Service. He was wonderful to work with!
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Ann, Kim, and Sarah,
My heart goes out to you! I am so sorry for your loss. Steve was such a great, personable guy. I remember hearing him on NPR a few years back joyfully exclaiming about NASA’s latest accomplishment and his enthusiasm made me smile. You all are in my thoughts.
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Thank you for the beautiful service for Steve. I have known Steve for many years since his early NASA and skiing days. What a remarkable man! I was always so amazed at his uncanny ability to immediately sum up a situation with exactly the right and fair perspective. He was funny, so respectful, a good friend, and, as was obvious from casual conversations with him, so in love with Ann and his girls. He made the world a better place through his example to all of us. He will be missed.
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We were deeply saddened by Steve’s passing and send our sincere condolences to Ann and the family. It was a privilege to work with him and he was and will remain a source of inspiration!
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I was so saddened hearing about Steve’s passing. Steve was an amazing person and leader. He truly cared about people which was so apparent in how he led the NASA family. Steve often talked about how you have to tack a boat through changing and difficult times to get where you need to be. I use that advice often and hope it will help his beloved family through this difficult time.
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I was shocked and saddened to learn of Steve’s untimely passing. Steve was a wonderful human being and a terrific leader and collaborator. I loved his positive energy and enthusiasm. My deepest sympathy to his family.
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Steve and I both started working at NASA Langley's Electronics Branch in the late 80s; and even though I do not believe we ever worked on the same flight project, we played on the same teams for every sport that Langley had through the 90s (volleyball, softball, flag football, basketball, & ultimate). We also spent several summers playing beach volleyball doubles tournaments together at the Virginia Beaches, and winters skiing before transitioning to snowboarding. For every team and activity, Steve was what I call a fun multiplier because not only did his exceptional wisdom and skill make every team exceedingly better, his wit and humor made every activity much more fun. My sincere condolences to Ann and all of his family.
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I was so sorry and shocked to hear about Steve’s passing. He was an outstanding leader of the COVID team that I served on at NASA. He led the NASA workforce with grace through uncharted waters. Very intelligent, kind, compassionate , calm, and thoughtful. My sincere condolences to his family.
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1996, Seven Springs, PA, USA
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I was so saddened to hear about the passing of Steve. He was a great leader and friend to so many. He truly was a man of integrity and an excellent example for us all. I am so glad I got to work for him in my career. My heartfelt prayers go out to family. He will definitely be missed.
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I was truly saddened by the news of Steve’s passing! My thoughts and prayers are with the family.
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An early Artemis wind tunnel test at Langley: As Center Director, Steve was always keen on discussing technical aspects of the research, and we were clearly having a fun discussion. His input was always refreshing and enlightening!
— with
Steve Jurczyk,
Pat Cosgrove,
Zac Applin,
Steven Reznick
and Jeremy Pinier
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Ann & Family:
I extend my sincere and heartfelt condolences to you on Steve’s passing. Steve was a gifted leader, but more importantly he was a great person and friend. May God continue to bless and comfort you with His grace, peace, and strength.
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I met Steve when he first arrived at NASA Langley in the 80's, with brief interactions over his entire career. His ascendance through the ranks at NASA, to me, demonstrates the character of the agency he loved. Thank you Steve. The ripples from your life grace us all, now and forever.
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Ann, I am so sorry to hear about your profound loss. Through your carpool stories I always felt like I knew Steve, what amazing adventures you had together. You and your family will be in my prayers.
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Jake Tarnoff
2017, NASA Langley Research Center, Nasa Drive, Hampton, VA, USA
“You said your partner’s dad works for NASA, right? What was his name again?” I asked AJ as I entered the main hall at NASA Langley’s Centennial celebration event. I knew I recognized Steve’s name on the list of honorary speakers for that day. Later that day during a break, I found Steve in a crowd and asked if I could chat with him for a bit. He was more than happy to talk with me. When I told him I was friends with his (at the time) potential son-in-law, we shared a laugh and sent him a selfie. Despite his well-deserved high status, Steve was the friendliest and most down-to-earth person I met at that whole event. You could tell he cared about everyone around him. Years later I finally got to meet Kim and immediately saw that she shared Steve’s same signature friendliness and genuine positivity. Even though I only got to meet Steve once, his impact on my life and career has been considerable. I will always remember him and how kind he was.
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