FHS80 : Remembered - Steve Britt

I met Steve in the 5th grade in Mrs. Abb's class at Johanna Perrin. We knew each other on and off through grade school and high school and then lost contact. I saw him at the 20th reunion and then at the 25th at Powder Mill Park.

We talked a great deal at the 25th and found we had a lot of common opinions about stuff. He is easy to talk to and I enjoyed his stories about life. We rekindled a friendship and e-mailed and phoned back and forth. I also came to visit him several times in Rochester with him visiting me in DC last Christmas.

I remember the last time I saw him was the weekend we went to the Rochester Film Festival at the Little Theater in May 2006. A month or so after that he experienced chest pains and that's when they found he had cancer.

Steve had a lot of talents. He could finish a jigsaw puzzle with little effort. He has many books that he read to educate himself. He played the synthesizer. He had many others. Overall, he was a good guy to know whose time was cut too short.

-- Nick Embrey - submitted December 9, 2006

Whole lot of good times hanging out, and riding bikes !

-- Rich Hampson - submitted December 10, 2006

My favorite memories of Steve have been the reunions. I will always love and remember his Doorway to Narnia story. I also loved his committment to the reunions and his party at Powder Mill Park. I will miss him greatly.

-- Penny Morse - submitted December 10, 2006

It is with great sadness that I am hearing of Steve's passing. It is never easy to hear of anyone's untimely death, let alone someone who was a classmate to us all. We have a very special class that has, some more than others, remained in contact for 25 years. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.

-- Michael Roberts - submitted December 10, 2006

Steve & I lived in the same neighborhood (Mountain Rise/Bittersweet Road) for a bit around 1975-1977. I moved the summer of '77 at which time we lost touch...until our FHS days when we socialized within the same circle of friends. I fondly remember a picnic on a windy day in 1982 at Mendon Ponds with several friends, including Steve, and many many parties. We caught up again in 2004 via email and I remember how dedicated and involved he was in your Class Reunion activities. Here's to the memories, Steve...You're in a better place now and we shall all see you again some day.

-- Julie Foster-Lombart - FHS '82

-- Submitted December 10, 2006

I am very saddened today to learn of Steve's passing. I have only a couple of memories of Steve at FHS - and he courageously admitted he only had a few of me. I did not have the blessings of growing up with our classmates like many of you have.

Steve and I exchanged email prior the Washington DC get together last year. We last spoke when he was promoting our 25 year class reunion that I could not attend. During that time we spoke of our love of roller coasters and we were both surprised that we loved Tangerine Dream - a band that is not a common household name. This lead to a long and pleasant conversation - one that surprised us both.

I am very glad that Steve put forth the effort to contact me. I would like to believe that we developed a new relationship based on only two facts; familiar names and FHS80. During this call I realized that Steve had a tremendously curious seeking spirit; one that showed appreciation for his life and whatever experiences he had or would have. Steve gave to me an appreciation for his optimism during this call. He said; "Joe, Opportunities are found every day. It doesn't matter what the opportunity is; I just seek them out!" Good bye Steve. Enjoy this new opportunity.

-- Joe Chromy -- submitted December 12, 2006

I'd have to say that the first time I met Steve would have been in Mrs. Jones' 3rd grade class at Jefferson Ave. I didn't remember that, though ... Steve did. He had an uncanny ability to recall facts and he wasn't afraid to use it! <grin> He told me, in fact, that he had some project that a group of us worked on from that year.

Steve and I played baseball together in the early years but it really wasn't until the year before our 25th reunion, when Steve and I really started corresponding, that I got to know him. And our correspondence continued until a month or so before his death.

Steve and I wrote about the very different paths that we'd taken in life. We shared some of our experiences with each other. We shared or challenges and our successes. And we talked about that time in our life that all of us at this website shared ... our high school experience.

In his updated Bio, Steve wrote of his favorite things:

"YOU, the class of 1980. I can't compete with you, you've done things that are beyond my comprehension.

Roller coasters, reading, taken to gardening of late ...

I thoroughly enjoy intellectual conversation on subjects historical, sociological, and philosophical! So if you're bored, email me, let's get together and compare notes and improve the planet."

Quintessentially Steve ...

Then Steve wrote about the years that followed high school. He wrote about his challenges, his faith and his quest for answers that took him, as he put it, "to live under bridges" and "to eat in soup kitchens." I don't know whether he found the answers he sought or not but he seemed oddly at peace and simultaneously driven. His tenacity when it came to the 25th reunion was ... unmatched. In all honesty, it's entirely possible that without Steve's drive, the 25th reunion may not have matured past the "idea" stage.

Steve's digital fingerprints are all over this website. From his own bio ... to the touching memories he shared of departed classmates ... to the variety of postings he left in the "Discussion" section, Steve used this website the way no other classmate has ... to reconnect with those from our past; our friends and our classmates. Perhaps that is just as it should be. His indelible mark shall remain as a tribute to his spirit, his life and his passions.

Steve's last email to me, coincidentally enough, was full of advice on how to help and support a cancer patient. My own father is presently fighting lung cancer, a challenge not dissimilar to that which Steve faced. He offered that one of the best things I could do is to maintain a great sense of humor. In fact, he advised that I play the comedian for 15 minutes. I think he may have known me better than I realized...

He ended that email by inviting me to give him a call when I was in town next. I never made it. I'm sorry, Steve. I shall miss our conversations but I hope to meet you again ... somewhere along our intertwined paths.

Namaste, Steve. Namaste.

-- Todd Pegelow -- submitted December 13, 2006