Steven Herbert Banta

Steven Herbert Banta of Paso Robles, Calif., passed away July 25, 2020, at the age of 75. He was born to Alford and Jean Banta on June 25, 1945 in Madison, Wis.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Marilyn Banta of Paso Robles; his son and daughter in law, Cory and Leslie Banta, of Nipomo; his daughter and son in law, Caron and Tony Alexander of Paso Robles; and six grandchildren he absolutely adored, Joshua and his wife Mallory Wreden (26), Tucker Banta (20), CorriAnne Cook (18), Shelby Cook (16) and Rylee Banta (10). Also surviving are his three brothers, Jerry (Marsha) Banta, Russ (Janice) Banta and Jay (Suzanne) Banta, as well as several adored nieces and nephews.

Shortly after Steve was born the family moved to his Grandfather's ranch in Castle Rock, Colo., for a short time. When he was three years old the family moved to Arizona, where he spent most of his childhood, until his Junior year of high school when they moved to King City. Following in his father's footsteps, Steve had a love for agriculture and was active in the Future Farmers of America. Upon graduating from King City High School in 1963, Steve attended Lassen College.

After college he was employed in different agriculture sectors, such as The Department of Fish and Game and Soil Serve, before landing with Cal Compac and Santa Maria Chili (later bought by ConAgra Foods) where he spent close to 40 years successfully managing farmland and dehydration plants. The only thing Steve failed at in life was retirement. After retiring from ConAgra, he and Marilyn bought Nipomo Feed and Ranch Supply in 1998. He spent the next ten years running the feed store together with his son, Cory, before being bought out in 2006.

After failing to retire for a second time he went back to work as a safety consultant until just a year before his death. Steve's life revolved around his family. As many know, he was extremely involved in supporting the health of two of his grandchildren, CorriAnne and Tucker. CorriAnne having a rare genetic disorder causing two strokes by the age of fifteen and Tucker having a rare childhood brain tumor in which treatment caused life altering side effects.

In lieu of flowers the family knows it would be Steve's wish for a donation to be made, in his honor, to the research department at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford or Children's Hospital of Los Angeles.

Plans for a celebration of life are under way and details will be available once final arrangements have been made.

Published in King City Rustler · August 5, 2020