From an early age, Steve had the courage and drive to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges. When he was 13 years old Steve was stricken with polio, which permanently limited the use of his left leg. Despite the challenges of being told he may never walk again, he travelled to many difficult parts of the world to end polio once and for all.
On an immunization trip to Ethiopia, he endured the difficulties of non-ADA hotels and the long trip to a rural immunization site where his reward was placing vaccine drops in the mouths of children. His dedication to social causes, especially health issues that affect global and underserved populations, is the hallmark of his career. He made contributions to the post-war redevelopment of South Vietnam and to the funding of Stove Team International (Eugene, OR) providing safe and fuel-efficient cook stoves to half a million people in Central America. At the time of his passing in 2019, he was working with Rotary International and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on their partnership initiative to eradicate Malaria worldwide.
"Fighting polio has prepared Rotarians to fight malaria...training neighbors to go house-to-house in their rural village just as we've learned we must do to end polio." — Steve Crane
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