Stephen Augustus Halbe passed away peacefully at home in Bozeman, Montana, on Sunday, August 9, 2026, at the age of 89 years, surrounded by his loving family.
Steve was born and raised in San Francisco, California. He later lived in Marin County, San Francisco, the Napa Valley, in both St. Helena and Bozeman as a snowbird and finally in Bozeman. Steve was a wonderful observer of people and a raconteur extraordinaire. His hometown of San Francisco was the source of many vivid stories of his Italian American family, his Richmond neighborhood, and boyhood adventures in the city. He recounted stories about working for the neighborhood butcher when he was a small boy, delivering hamburger meat to Playland, an amusement park near the beach. He pulled his cargo in a little wagon for several city blocks, fearing dogs and bullies along the way. Golden Gate Park was his backyard. Steve’s love of music began early with instrumental lessons and singing with the Grace Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys. Steve served in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve from 1954 to 1961. He graduated from San Francisco State University in 1961, with a B.A. in Education and Music. He earned graduate credits and attended chamber music workshops at Chico State University and Montana State University. He taught classroom and instrumental music at various grades in Bay Area schools for over 30 years, taught private instrumental lessons and was a woodwind instructor at Pacific Union College in later years. Steve completed a Sabbatical in 1979, traveling through Europe with his young family. Another source for many humorous stories. Steve was a professional musician in the Bay Area and played primarily woodwind instruments. Early in his career, he was a bandleader for Hoberg’s, a small resort in Lake County. Thereafter, as a freelance musician, he played clarinet, saxophone, and flute for San Francisco’s Curran, Orpheum and Geary theaters; Skywalker Ranch (for the movie, Tucker); stage shows including Pal Joey (on stage); and the Fairmont Hotel and Hyatt Regency in San Francisco and in South Shore, Lake Tahoe. His skill as a musician and his passion for music brought him to play in show bands, which featured such artists as Tony Bennett, Henry Mancini, Al Martino, Jerry Vale and Andy Williams. He also played convention and circus jobs, which provided him with endless tales from under the Big Top. He played oboe and English horn with the Golden Gate and Oakland Park bands and was the principal oboist with both the Napa Valley Symphony Orchestra and San Francisco’s Bohemian Club Orchestra. Steve played with the American Philharmonic Orchestra and toured China with the orchestra. He later played with community bands, in both St. Helena and Bozeman and various quintets in the San Francisco Bay Area. Steve was a Bohemian Club Honorary Member after 20 years of membership. Within his tenure, he served as Executive Committee Member and Executive Committee Chair. He held a Bohemian Production Event Committee Appointment for several years. Steve was a member of the Chamber Musicians of Northern California, the San Francisco Musical Fund Society, Est. 1864, and the National Association of Band Instrument Repair Technicians. Steve was mentored in band instrument repair by Ludwig Topher, a fellow musician and instrument repair technician. Steve was later the sole proprietor and technician of repair shops near the Musicians’ Union in San Francisco and in Novato. His experience in business offered even more subjects for his keen observations and sense of humor. Throughout Steve’s passionate and busy life, he taught and played music from high profile venues in San Francisco to his wife’s Girdle Mountain Summer House Restaurant in Belt, Montana, playing Vivaldi on his flute and waiting tables. He had stories about it all, as he touched friends, family and students along the way. Steve will live in the hearts of those who knew him for his talent, his wit, and his genuine grace. As his Grandson observed, Steve was the epitome of “Sweetness and Light.” Steve was preceded in death by his first wife, Claudette Borloz Halbe; mother, Mary Firpo Halbe; father, Joseph Augustus Halbe; brother, Frank Joseph Halbe; and uncles Dan, Silvio, and John Firpo. Steve is survived by his loving friend and wife of 48 years, Sherrill Baldwin Halbe. He leaves his daughter, Denise Halbe (Michael Denahan) of Sonoma, CA; stepchildren, Gar Rector, Saint Helena, CA, Michelle Rector (Leon Sanchez) Helena, MT, and Kelli Rector (Gary Gannon), Belgrade, MT; his grandchildren, Natalie & Tessa Rector, Eli Sanchez, Aaron Gannon (Rylee Doore) and Sean Gannon; as well as sisters-in-law, brothers-in law, nephews and nieces. In memory of Stephen A. Halbe, donations may be made, in his name, to a favorite cause that contributes to “Sweetness and Light. Arrangements are in the care of Dokken-Nelson Funeral Service. www.dokkennelson.com
