H. Steel Bokhof Jr.

During a sophomore study hall at New Trier High School in 1952, Steel Bokhof first noticed the lovely and winsome Penny Clinton. Despite wearing a cumbersome back brace after a bout with polio and weighing 100 pounds sopping wet, young Steel courageously struck up a conversation with Penny. It was the start of a relationship that would span the next 7 decades, include 3 children, 8 grandchildren, countless friends, life adventures, abundant love and happiness.

Steel passed away in Wilmette, IL on May 25, 2021 one day short of his 84th birthday. The cause was complications of vascular dementia.

H. Steel Bokhof Jr. was born in Shaker Heights, OH on May 26, 1937. His father H. Steel Bokhof Sr. was a partner at the advertising firm of Foote, Cone & Belding. His mother Edlyn (nee Blettner) was a homemaker.

His family moved to the Chicago area in 1949, settling in the suburb of Wilmette on Chicago’s north shore. Chicago would become a lifelong home for Steel, as it would for his twin brothers Dick and Ted. After graduating from New Trier in 1955, he attended Kenyon College for two years. Following his father’s sudden death during his sophomore year, he transferred to Northwestern University from which he graduated in 1959. Steel and Penny were married in August 1957 and celebrated their wedding at Exmoor Country Club where they were feted by hundreds of family members and friends.

After graduation from Northwestern, Steel started a career in the financial services industry. He held various positions, including stops at Solomon Brothers and Northern Trust Bank. In 1989, he founded an investment firm which continues operation today as Optimum Investments. During the course of his career, he deftly counseled clients, enthusiastically partnered with colleagues and joyfully embraced his profession and life in general. Always quick with a smile and a warm greeting, he would never hesitate to wade into a crowd of strangers with his hand extended in the most welcoming way, genuinely curious to know who they were.

Steel and Penny raised their 3 children in Glenview and Wilmette. Steel, an avid and skilled squash player, was an active member of the Racquet Club of Chicago and the University Club of Chicago where he also sat on the board. For many years he supported the Evans Scholars Foundation, a non-profit organization headquartered in Glenview that provides full tuition and housing scholarships to golf caddies. He was a committed fan of all things Chicago, with a particular affection for the Bears and Cubs.

Steel was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Dick. He is survived by his wife Penny, his brother Ted, his 3 children Laura (Paul), Steel III (Liz) and Lee (Matt), and eight grandchildren, Michael, Sophie and Miles Rios, Lucy and Charlotte Bokhof, Hannah, Sarah and Cate Burns, all of whom (children and grandchildren) have also graduated (or soon will) from New Trier High School; and it all started with a chance meeting in sophomore study hall.

Steel will be profoundly missed and remembered as a loving husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend. A memorial service celebrating his life will be held at 4 p.m. on June 9, 2021 at the Church of the Holy Comforter in Kenilworth, IL.