MADISON - Dr. Thomas Hartman Steele, Emeritus Professor of
Nephrology at University of Wisconsin-Madison, died April 24, 2012 at home, surrounded by his family. He was 75.
Dr. Steele was born December 20, 1936, in New Castle, Pennsylvania, the son of Kenneth C. Steele, a chemist for Johnson Bronze, and Margaret Goodman Steele. He attended Haverford College, graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Chemistry in 1958, going on to receive his M.D., from Columbia University in 1962. After a residency and internship at the UW-Madison, he worked for the US Public Health Service through service at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, and the National Cancer Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. He went on to join the faculty of the University of Chicago Medical School in 1967. In 1970, Dr. Steele joined the faculty at the UW -Madison where he served as a Professor of Medicine, Attending Physician and Associate Director of the University’s Department of Medicine Metabolic Unit. He combined teaching and clinical responsibilities with numerous professional memberships, consulting and research, being an avid researcher with over 100 peer-reviewed publications. He was known by his colleagues for his ability to be able to take extremely complex subject matter and, without excluding relevant material, making it understandable and usable. He retired in 2011.
Dr. Steele is survived by his wife of 53 years, Ramona Jesse Steele;
four children: Karen Steele, of Salem, Oregon; Todd Steele, of Evanston, Illinois; Heidi Steele, of Chicago, Illinois; and Alyson Steele, of Arlington, Virginia; and six grandchildren: Katie, Grace, Mack, Jack, Jesse and Audrey.
Tom was a quiet man whose few words often expressed insightful, wry observations. In addition to his love of science, he enjoyed reading and listening to classical and jazz music, the latter often leading to the search for the most compelling rendition of a particular work. His love of science and music contributed to a lifelong fascination with technology and gadgets, from his sixties-era Crown reel-to-reel with comparable hi-fidelity stereo system, to still and movie cameras, and, in his later years, hybrid vehicles. Dr. Steele shared his wife Mona's delight in haute cuisine, introducing his children to the same at the well-loved restaurant Le Perroquet, in Chicago. Tom and Mona also shared a love of classic cinema and comedy from their early married days in New York City. Their children fondly remember Tom's celluloid home screenings of, among other classics, Phantom of the Opera, Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times and Laurel and Hardy’s Chump At Oxford. Those celluloid screenings were succeeded by DVD screenings of other classics such as Singin’ In The Rain, Alastair Sim’s School for Scoundrels, and Peter Sellers’ The Naked Truth.
A memorial service is scheduled for 1:00 PM on Saturday, April 28, 2012, at the Atrium Auditorium of the First Unitarian Society, 900 University Bay Drive, Madison, Wisconsin. In lieu of flowers, please join the family in honoring Dr. Steele’s life and career through contributions to the University League’s Scholarship Fund for Medical Students, P.O. Box 5064, Madison, WI 53705-0064.
Gunderson West Funeral & Cremation Care
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