Freddie Bruce Steenbergen

Freddie Bruce Steenbergen

Fred was born on February 20th, 1931. He was born on the family farm outside of Gracemont. His parents were Freeman and Lula Mae (Pet) Steenbergen. They lived in Gracemont a couple of years then moved to a farm in Spring Creek. They lived there for eight years. In Spring Creek, he remembered there being the Baptist Church, a general store, a blacksmith shop, another general store, a cotton gin, feed grinder, egg and cream house, and the Spring Creek school where he attended until the 4th grade. When he was 10, they moved to Anadarko. That was in 1941 when he started going to school there...during the time of World War II. He graduated from high school in 1949.

Fred looks back at his wonderful childhood. The family were cotton farmers. That was hard work hoeing and picking cotton. The family always had a big garden for canning fruits and vegetables, and a smoke house with meat. It was common for family or friends to stop by in their horse drawn wagons to load up on some groceries. His mother was an excellent cook. The meals he had at home were always delicious and plentiful. You would see her also work in the fields, but stop short of lunchtime to go in and prepare a meal of fried chicken, pinto beans, vegetables, and her famous hot rolls or bread. She always had a pie or cake in the cupboard. He was a momma's boy!

Fred was President of the FFA his Senior year. He showed pigs. His favorite subject in elementary school was recess! His favorite subject in high school was math! His favorite childhood memory is riding his horse Topsy around the Washita River with his dog Tarzan. Fred was a cowboy and loved training his horse tricks. He had two siblings...an older brother James (Calvin) and a younger sister Joann. His favorite memory of Calvin was opossum hunting with him in the wintertime. His favorite memory of Joann was how he cheered her up after her precious dog died...he bought her a baby goat for a dollar!

After he graduated from high school in 1949, he worked jobs doing carpentry and concrete work in Oklahoma and Kansas. He joined the Army in 1953-1955 and then the National Guard for three more years. This was during the Korean War. Fred was stationed in the state of Washington at Fort Lewis. A fun thing that happened at Fort Lewis...was that Audie Murphy...a Hollywood Star from California came to Fort Lewis to star in the movie... To Hell and Back. He was picked as an extra and almost a double look alike of Audie.... they became friends.

Fred married after his service in 1955. They moved to Bethany where he continued to work as a carpenter. He took a correspondence course from the Chicago Technician College to learn how to read blueprints. He was a carpenter for many years but soon became the Superintendent over large construction projects. One of the grand buildings he worked on was the First National Building when it was remodeled in the late 50's. On the side, he remodeled and built homes. He even built his family home in Banner, Okla.

While living in Bethany, the family were members of West Tenth Baptist Church and attended faithfully. Fred always wore his cowboy hat on the job when he didn't need his hard hat.....in the summer a straw hat but any other time he was known for only wearing a silver belly felt hat. He was easy to spot wherever he went. They had three daughters Rhonda Gayle, Robbie Lou, and Renee. He continued his love of horses with his daughters. He broke and trained their horses. He hauled the girls and their horses all over the state and country to show at horseshows and rodeo. He still farmed with his dad Freeman in Anadarko but no more cotton...only wheat and cattle! He loved going fishing with his dad. That was some of the best memories of taking the horses to Anadarko to gather cattle, separate them, castrate, give shots, and brand.

Fred was sharing his childhood with his daughters as they were riding the same river gathering the cattle and looking for Poke to make poke salad with their Grandma.

Fred retired at age 75 from McMasters Construction. His last jobs were multi million dollar construction projects. He loved his work and thinks fondly of those days of working with his hands making something useful and beautiful.

After retirement, he had been enjoying his family and checking on the animals. He enjoyed watching things grow...the pasture, planting grasses, also working up the arena so riding can still continue. He was always in for a favorite game of dominos. He even took the time to come to Edmond to sit with students at "Donuts with Dad" when fathers could not attend. That was special. In 2013, he started attending the Canadian County Cowboy Church...until covid.... then he started watching a bible study on his television with Les Feldick..he watches 2-3 episodes a day since they are recorded. He loves it when others watch with him so they can discuss what's being taught. He loves Jesus and is faithful.

Funeral Service: 1:00pm Tuesday, April 1, 2025

First Baptist Church, Anadarko

Visitation: 1:00-8:00pm Sunday, March 30, 2025

9:00am-8:00pm Monday, March 31, 2025

Ray and Martha's Funeral Home, Anadarko

Interment: Memory Lane Cemetery, Anadarko

Under the direction Ray and Martha' s Funeral Home, Anadarko