Stuart Lee Steinberg

Stuart Lee Steinberg was born in Titusville, Pennsylvania, to Flora and Max Steinberg. The third of four children, he learned early how to win over a full house. Charm became his first act, and it would be the first of many.

At Titusville High School he ran track, was part of a winning mile relay team and sang in the chorus. He spent his summers as a camp counselor, then served in the U.S. Air Force from 1967 to 1971 as an X-ray technician with the 825th Medical Group in Little Rock, Arkansas, reaching the rank of staff sergeant.

Stuart had always been drawn to people, learning about them with curiosity and delight. He followed that love into psychology, graduating from Allegheny College in 1975 and earning a Master of Arts degree in clinical psychology from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 1977.

Life took Stuart down many roads, chasing love, adventure and purpose. As a licensed psychologist, he worked in hospitals, private practice, youth programming and correctional facilities, spending the last decade of his career as chief psychologist at SCI Mercer. His greatest joy was watching people feel capable, recover and succeed.

Pittsburgh held a special place in Stuart’s heart. He counted the decades he lived there among his happiest, filled with friends, the arts and the energy of the city. He soaked up all it had to offer, from the Carnegie Science Center and Phipps Conservatory to Raccoon State Park, the Three Rivers Arts Festival and Sundays spent cheering on the Steelers. It’s where he proudly opened his private practice, S.L.S. Associates, and where he welcomed his beloved daughter, Haley, with her mother, Deborah Blair (Alabran).

Stuart loved a beautiful car, a new place to explore and someone beside him to share the story. He adored the classics, the sports cars and everything in between. He enjoyed working on them, driving them and showing them off at local car shows. His most prized was his 2004 Jaguar XKR Portfolio in Jupiter Red Mica, lovingly customized with a supercharged engine and a license plate reading “1 of 100.” In 2023, it earned North American First in Class with a near-perfect score of 9.99967 out of 10, and a photo of its engine won first place in the 2015 SNG Barrett photo contest. Stuart was a member of the Jaguar Clubs of Pittsburgh and Ohio.

Stuart was a natural showman: a charming and gifted storyteller, actor and singer who could fill any room with laughter. He performed in several theater productions, wrote award-winning fiction for Jaguar publications and served on the board of the Greenville Symphony Orchestra.

He was endlessly curious about history, travel and culture, drawn to the stories of early America, Native American cultures and the American West.

Stuart lived to care for and amuse the people he loved, and he shared his joy freely with all of them. He could talk with anyone about anything, and he collected lifelong friends everywhere he went, often popping by their homes unannounced, with a little gift in hand. At home, he was a doting cat dad, never without a furry companion or two.

In his later years, Stuart shared his life with his fiancée, Susie, in a lakeside home in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, his favorite place to recharge and take in the view. With his siblings, Bob and Arlene, nearby, it was the perfect place to settle, and his days filled with family and friends, kayaking on nearby lakes, shared dinners and long conversations. Susie was a blessing to him and his family, bringing an abundance of love and positivity to everyone around her.

Stuart’s proudest role was father to his daughter, Haley. He gave her his values, opened her mind to the world and instilled in her the same curiosity and care that guided him throughout his life. He was a constant, vivid presence for Haley, and everyone who knew him could see how boundlessly he loved her.

Stuart faced cancer with fierce determination and resilience for the last twelve months of his life. Susie cared for him tenderly and he was wrapped in her love and light. He passed peacefully on October 21, 2026, in Cleveland, at the Louis Stokes VA Medical Center's Heroes Harbor, with Haley and her stepsister, Natalie Kazmierczak, by his side.

He is survived by his daughter, Haley, and her husband, Dave Santosuosso; his granddaughter, Sylvia Warren Santosuosso; his fiancée, Susie; his brother, Bob Steinberg, and Bob’s sons, David, Adam and Steven; his sister, Arlene, and her children, Amy and Glenn; his niece, Nina Huie, daughter of his late brother, Bryan; many cousins and dear friends he collected along the way. He is preceded by his parents Flora and Max Steinberg.

Friends and family are invited to gather and celebrate Stuart’s life on Friday, November 6, at 1:00 p.m., at the Berkowitz-Kumin-Bookatz Memorial Chapel, 1985 S. Taylor Road, in Cleveland Heights, OH. To view this service, please scroll down to the services section and click on "JOIN LIVESTREAM".

Donations in Stuart’s honor may be made to the Lymphoma Research Foundation at giving.lymphoma.org/StuartLeeSteinberg or to Jewish Family and Community Services of Pittsburgh at jfcspgh.networkforgood.com/projects/80254-general-jfcs . Checks may be made payable to Jewish Family and Community Services, 5743 Bartlett Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. Please write “In memory of Stuart Lee Steinberg” in the memo.