Steven James Minturn was born at 5:02 p.m. Monday, September 16, 1968, to loving parents Thomas Earl and Virginia Varah Minturn, in Liberal, Kansas. He grew up in the plains states, southwest Kansas, Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, and came to Denver to stay in June of 1987.

He loved the majesty of the mountains and cherished all of nature. He was an avid fisherman, hunter, camper, mountain climber, and good friend to everyone he chanced to meet. He was also a pretty good pool player and was the B League MVP in the City of Denver Rocky Mountain Dart Association in 2008.

In 1991 he married Laura Jones, who shared his love of nature. They had a beautiful son, Steven Mack, in the early evening of March 11, 1999. His son has been the light of his life since the day he was born. They shared everything a father and son could, both before and after his parents’ divorce in 2002. Steven Mack began rock climbing before he was two and had his own climbing gear. They also camped and fished and skied together, and he often went to work with his dad.

Steve was a plumber by trade and was known to many as STP, or Steve the Plumber. He took pride in his work and could fix about anything. His motto, which was on his refrigerator magnet cards, was “Don’t fix what needs replaced.” He worked regularly for many bars in Denver because their needs tended to be immediate, and he was willing to come when he was needed. He also had a sizeable clientele around Lake McConaughy, Nebraska, where he had a trailer by the lake. Many folks were proud that they could get a plumber quicker from Denver than from the local community. That made him proud too, and gave him another excuse for going to the lake.

He died of an apparent heart attack at 1:45 a.m. April 26, 2010, while trying to mediate an altercation at City Pub, a neighborhood bar where he had known everyone for nearly twenty years. They have held an evening of tribute to Steve and intend to place a plaque in his honor above the dart board he encouraged them to install for the enjoyment of the patrons.

Steve loved life and all it held for him, his family, good friends, and activities of all kinds. He was a great cook, loved looking at the stars and learning about everything. One of his friends said that if a catastrophe happened, there was no one who would be better to be with because he always prepared for every eventuality. He will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him, especially his only son Steven Mack, his loving mother Virginia, his little sister Christine, and his father Tom. There will be a memorial and tribute to Steve on Sunday, May 2, 2010, at 2:00 p.m. at Horan McConaty Family Chapel at 11150 E. Dartmouth Ave., Denver. His ashes will be taken to the Lake later in the summer to rest among the things he loved in life.

We welcomed him to his forever home at the Cremation Gardens on 10/23/2026.