James Erwin Steckel - On Wednesday, November 21, 2012 James E. (Jim) Steckel, age 95, passed away peacefully at 9:05 a.m. He was born March 31, 1917, to Agnes Jane Conroy and Erwin Philippe Steckel of Milwaukee, WI. Jim was a graduate of the 1935 class of Marquette University High School in Milwaukee, WI. He lived his life to honor the Lord and devoted his life to his passions of music and Catholic education. He obtained his bachelor's degree from Loyola University of New Orleans and was awarded an MA in History from UNO under the direction of the late Stephen Ambrose. Jim taught history and civics at Jesuit High School in New Orleans for 27 years and served as a librarian in the Jefferson Parish library system before retiring in 1989. He founded and, for more than 50 years, directed the St. Agnes Adult Choir. He was awarded the Order of St. Louis by the Archdiocese of New Orleans and was a member of the Knights of Columbus. Jim held the rank of Technical Sergeant in the U.S. Army during WWII and proudly served as a member of the Third Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge. He was a founding member of the Third Armored Division, Deep South Chapter alumni group. During Mardi Gras 1937, on his first visit to New Orleans, he met the love of his life, Dorothy Rita Schluter, whom he married in 1943. Jim was preceded in death by his wife Dorothy, his sister, Jane Melanie Steckel, of Chicago, IL, and brother, John Adrian Steckel, of New York City. He is survived by six children: Kathleen S. McCrossen of River Ridge; James E. Steckel, Jr. of Houston, Tx; Robert A. Steckel of Amherst, Va; Anita S. McCrossen of Jefferson; Thomas More Steckel of Abingdon, Va; and Paul Francis Steckel of Mannheim, Germany; 11 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. A wake will be held from 6:00 p.m to 9:00 p.m. Tuesday at Leitz-Eagan Funeral Home on Veterans Blvd. A visitation will also be held at St. Agnes Catholic Church, 3310 Jefferson Hwy., at 9:00 a.m., followed by a funeral Mass at 10:00 a.m. Burial will be at Garden of Memories. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial gifts to St. Agnes Parish and to St. Agnes Parochial School, Jefferson, La.
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