LeRoy Steichen

The Mass of Christian Burial will be offered for LeRoy Steichen on February 12, 2022, at 9:30am at Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel at Thomas Aquinas College. The burial will follow at Pierce Brothers Cemetery in Santa Paula.

LeRoy Steichen died January 21, 2022. He was just a few months short of his one hundredth birthday. Until his diagnosis of Covid pneumonia, Roy had displayed few symptoms of his age. He led an active life playing golf twice a week.

LeRoy was born May 19, 1922 in St. Cloud, MN, to Joseph and Mary (Barthelemy) Steichen. He joined the Minnesota National Guard after his senior year in High School. LeRoy was identified as a candidate for additional training and went off to artillery training. He served in the U.S. until he was sent to England to join the assembly of the U.S. Third Army under General George Patton.

When the Third Army was moved to the Normandy Invasion area Roy was company Exec. Officer. When the company commander was killed in combat Roy assumed the command of the company. Patton’s Third Army led the breakout from the Normandy beachhead and embarked on 281 days of continuous brutal combat as the Third Army Swept through France and Germany.

When the final German offensive broke through at what was known as the Battle of The Bulge, Patton changed direction, came in and successfully defeated the German forces in the battle of the Bulge at Bastogne. Roy fought through it all.

LeRoy was shot in the leg by the Germans, but as soon as his wound was patched up, he requested to return to his unit to continue fighting. He remained with Patton’s army through the entire War, finally taking the area around Linz, Austria. He later served again during the Korean War.

Like many of the citizen soldiers of World War II, LeRoy went back to college when he returned, attending and graduating from St. Johns University. He also starred as an outstanding, hard playing, member of the college Ice Hockey Team.

After college, he married Donna Merrigan on Oct. 28, 1950, at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Minneapolis, MN. LeRoy and Donna raised their four children in St. Cloud, MN while he built a successful career as a sales representative for Flexsteel Furniture Company. He eventually retired with his wife to the Ojai area where for many years he enjoyed visiting with his numerous descendants. He was also a contributing supporter in the founding of Thomas Aquinas College in Ojai, CA, and now, Northfield, MA.

LeRoy was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers, three sisters, and his son-in-law, Mark Berquist. He is survived by his wife, Donna; his youngest sister, Jeanne; his two sons, John (Ann) and Paul; two daughters, Laura Berquist and Peggy (Paul) O’Reilly; his 25 grandchildren, and 21 great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Thomas Aquinas College at thomasaquinas.edu or to Mother of the Divine Grace School at modg.org.