1943
Steven
2019
Steven Edward Connelly
September 7, 1943 — October 27, 2019
Steve was preceded in death by his parents, George and Cleo Connelly, his wife, Pam Connelly, and his sister, Susan Connelly. He is survived by his daughter, Kathleen Connelly (Emilye Crosby), son, Sean Connelly (Kay Connelly), two grandchildren, Ciabhan and Fionn Connelly, his sister's wife, Abby Ingrum, and his girlfriend, Jo Whicker. He was also survived by his sister-in-law, Dianne Maguire (Ken Maguire) and numerous nieces, nephews and their families on his wife's side. Finally, he was survived by numerous grand-pets, including Zaz, Spiff, Juno, and Nada, who will forever miss his treats.
Born to one of the infamous Hard-Drinking, Street-Fighting Matthews Sisters, Steve learned to drink and swear before he could walk, setting him firmly on the path to an academic's life as a professor of English. Even in later years, he could not escape the impact of his upbringing, once claiming the toe of a boy 20 years his junior in a knife fight in New Orleans. He was spotted on the back steps of his home teaching all of the neighborhood children how to roll joints, and escorting a one-armed card dealer into the house of the Madame who lived on the corner of his block.
He became involved with his wife when poor Patty Winchester gave his class ring to her best friend for safekeeping. Her best friend (Pamela Anderson Connelly) held the ring in bad faith, proclaiming herself the steady of Steve, and lured him with it to the altar. Unable to recover his ring, he remained married until his wife's death when the spell should have broken. He suffered its effects, however, for the remainder of his life.
He showed promise as a baseball player, getting two solid hits off Tommy John in high school. Drafted by the Millwaukee Braves organization out of high school, Steve was unable to meet the standards or the morality clause.
Always a champion of the underdog, he remained a life-long Yankees fan, enduring even the hardship of the occasional year they went without a World Series ring. When America finally discovered soccer, he again followed a rocky path, choosing to be a Manchester United fan.
His entire life he was recognized as one of their own by children and dogs alike, and was always under suspicion in the world of adults. In a constant struggle to maintain a grown-up disguise, he often erred by wearing tennis shoes with suits, by challenging his freshman English classes to games of Nerf Basketball.
A graduate of the University of Michigan, he always maintained the highest literary standards, acquiring significant collections of the works of Scrooge McDuck, Cerebus the Aardvark, Conan the Barbarian, and more, decorating his office extensively in these images that his students might always feel the gravity of literature in his presence.
A visitation is scheduled from 1:00-2:00 pm, Saturday, November 2, 2019 at Callahan & Hughes Funeral Home, 605 S. 25th Street, followed immediately by a memorial service at 2:00pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in memory of Steve Connelly to one his favorite charities: The New York Yankees, who are in desperate need of cash for starting pitching, Riley Hospital for Children (https://www.rileychildrens.org/about/ways-to-give), or Make-A-Wish Foundation (https://wish.org).
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Steven Edward Connelly, please visit our flower store.
Service Schedule
Past Services
Visitation
Saturday, November 2, 2019
1:00 - 2:00 pm (Eastern time)
Callahan & Hughes Funeral Home
Memorial Services
Saturday, November 2, 2019
Starts at 2:00 pm (Eastern time)
Callahan & Hughes Funeral Home
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