Friends,

I wanted to pass on the sad news of another one our Campfire friends having gone west. Steve Carberry, aka 7x57 Steve, passed away Monday in his sleep after an extended illness. Many here have met Steve over the years and he was instrumental in starting the campfire pig hunts in TN as well as getting a lot of us in Md together on a frequent basis to hunt, shoot or at least have a beer.

Born January 24, 1940 in Wa DC, even with no family members that hunted or fished, Steve was drawn to it at an early age. He told the story of he and his father walking down to the local newsstand for his Dad to pick up the Saturday Evening Post and Steve getting his first copy of Field and Stream. It was life-changing event for him and it lead to a life-long avocation.

Professionally Steve was educated at Georgetown and went to law school there and worked for the Department of Defence in acquisitions the majority of his career. He started with the Bureau of Ships and then moved on to Naval Air Systems Command (ironic for someone didn't fly!) There he became a Senior Executive (the civilian flag officer equivalent) and was responsible for the acquisition efforts of several significant programs including the Navy Tomahawk Land Attack Missile and the privatization of the Naval Avionics Laboratory, the largest privatization ever conducted by the government. At the end of his career he was the Chief Procurement officer for HUD working to modernize their financial system. A life-long conservative, his many times testifying in front of congress left him with a healthy skepticism of all politicians.

Steve made many trips west to hunt big game but his true love was squirrel, rabbit and varmint hunting. We did a fair amount of bird hunting together as well. He leaves a large family mostly on the east coast between here and New England and made sure his grandchildren had the opportunity to experience the outdoors and his love of them.

We'll miss you Steve.



Vancouver island bear


L->R 284LUVR, Pugs, Steve shooting small bore silhouette.

Sorry for your loss Pugs. Cherish your memories.

Prayers for Steve and family

RIP and condolences to family.

Looks like he lived a life worth living.

Sorry for your loss.......

RIP Steve......

SALUD!!!

My condolences to his family and friends. I'm sorry for your loss Pugs and thank you for sharing the photos with us.

RIP Steve

Ahhhhh Pugs...this is bad, sad news...

I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Steve...a gentleman in every sense, with impeccable taste in sporting arms I might add.

We have truly lost one of the good ones....

Thank you Sir for the testimony. We are lesser for the loss of him.

RIP Steve!

RIP. Sorry for the loss of a good man!

A life well lived. I'm sorry for the loss to his friends and family.

Oh man...

Godspeed on your journey, Steve. Condolences to those left behind.

this is sad news indeed. Steve was always a gentleman, and contributed much to us here, as well as America. He will be missed.

RIP Steve.

I’m sorry for the loss of your friend Pugs.

Godspeed!

Just damn!

Condolences to his family.

RIP.

Sorry to read about this loss. RIP Steve. Damn! Talked a couple times to Steve about rifles and such. A good man will be missed.

Sorry to hear of Your and Our loss! We’ve lost many over the years, and as many of us have seen better days....the losses will continue!

I’m glad that several of you had the opportunity to share time with 7x57Steve. Hopefully, many of us will have the opportunity to share time and experiences with other members. After all....we are a “fraternity of brothers”! memtb

Very sorry. Heartfelt condolences.

I only met him that one time at your place, Pugs, but I was certainly impressed by him in every way. He will be sorely missed.

Very Sad News !!!!!

Condolences to family & friends.

Thnx Pugs for the background & pictures.

Jerry

So sorry to hear. Condolences and Prayers. Rest in Peace.

Joe

Sad news. RIP Steve. Prayer for comforting of family and friends.

Sounds like he was a good man with good friends.

RIP Steve.

Rest in peace, Steve. Thank you for the brief bio, Pugs. Chatted with Steve a little at the ol TN pig hunts. As was said, an absolute gentleman, a planner, thoughtful, full of decency.

Come to think of it, don’t understand quite how he put up with some of you characters

This is bad news. I had the pleasure of meeting him in TN. My condolences to his family and friends.

Goodbye Steve, we will miss you.

Will definitely be missed....

I did not know Steve,but his reputation is solid as a good man.RIP Steve.

Pugs,

Very Sad news indeed. We got together a few times over the years and Steve was a true gentlemen. I last spoke with Steve 1 1/2 ago checking in with him as he had not posted in a while. Steve was well and hunted hard until the end. He was a fellow "left Hand" shooter and had some really nice guns.

He will be sadly missed.

Greg

Well said, Tom. I also had the pleasure of knowing him, a true gentleman through and through. Home is the hunter, home from the hill...

Thoughts prayers and condolences to family and friends.

That was a very nice write up Pugs, thanks.

I was fortunate enough to have a beer with him on several occasions and I shot with him once. He was a very nice guy.

Amazing the lives behind the screen names.

I was thinking the same thing.


RIP

sad to hear this news

I'm saddened by our loss.. and I should say, his family's loss. I didn't know him, but suspected he was a really good guy. The original post speaks volumes as to what a great man he was.

I never met him, but I did appreciate him as one of the good guys here. His passing will leave a big hole in the fabric of our campfire. May he rest in peace.

My condolences to his friends and family. He sounds like someone worth knowing.

Sorry for the loss of your friend, and for his family. RIP

RIP Steve, and PUGs what a good friend you are./ We're lucky to have had the both of you two

It's double sad when a person of Class passes.

Pugs: May your friend and our fellow campfire member rest in peace.
Thank you for advising us.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Sorry to hear of a Good Man's passing.

I'm sure he will be sorely missed.

My condolences to his family and friends. Thank you Pugs for posting.

Life is just a vapor...so hard for us all to outlive old friends and loved ones. May he live on your memories Pard! Enjoy each day!

Very nice tribute. Rest easy, Steve. Thoughts and prayers from Iowa for those left behind. Cherish the memories and keep them alive.

Condolences to friends and family.

I had the pleasure and honor of knowing Steve for 25years
We served as range officers together at our local gun club. We meant to shoot on nearly a weekly basis. We hunted all over the country and Canada together. He was truly a fine gentleman in a class act. And he will be missed by many.

Happy hunting Steve, may the force be with you!

Sad news, condolences to his family and friends.

RIP Steve and run free on the open fields of eternity.

Being called home in your sleep is a kindness that I pray for.

I offer up my thoughts and prayers for his family and friends everywhere.

Prayers for the family.

Damn. Condolences to his family and friends.

All I can do is echo the sentiments of others here.

Godspeed on the newest of your journeys Steve.

Geno

Pugs
Hats off to you for all of the supppr you’ve given Steve and his family.

Very sorry to hear this sounds like Steve was quite a guy!

Prayers sent for those who loved him.

RIP Steve.

Very sorry to hear of his passing. I know you feel a great loss. To Steve's family and all his friends I offer my condolences. I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Steve...a gentleman in every sense of the word. We have lost one of the truly good ones.

RIP Steve god bless

That's a real loss. RIP!

I’m so sorry Pugs,I know you were close.

Steve was a great man..........a gentleman if there ever was one. He tolerated those if us who were a bit ‘rougher’ was elk and, I hope, found some enjoyment over the years in TN.

Steve will definitely be missed.

George

So sorry to hear this,

May Steve find eternal warmth and peace.

Rip

Always a good guy.

Always...

Saddened to hear of Steve's passing. He was a gentleman, and I was glad to have made his acquaintance.

RIP, Steve.

RIP Steve

Always sad to lose one of the good ones

Condolences to family and friends.

Prayers sent for family and friends.
I never met him personally, but feel he would fit in well at ANY of the Campfire get-togethers.
Sorry to have never met him face-to-face.

A life well lived. RIP.

Sorry to hear that.

Memory Eternal.

Steve, RIP.

George

RIP Steve.

Pugs, thank you for the well written tribute.

Prayers for Steve's family. They don't make em like him anymore.

Sad news...RIP Steve. We only hunted squirrels once down in Amherst....but he cooked a mean speed goat steak!
Condolences to his friends and family.

RIP Sir

Thanks for letting us know Pugs....

I've had the luck of exchanging a few PMs with Steve over the years...
certainly a top shelf gentleman...

Steve made a comment to me one time, when I was doing the rifle program for Veterans on the campfire..

Steve send me a generous check, with a note thanking me for taking the time to do that project..

His note also, told me, that It was the best money he'd spend all year...

Perfect example of what kind of gentleman he was...

Condolences to his family and friends, on their loss...

on the other hand, a Good Man is going home....

Sad news indeed, and a very nice eulogy Allen.

I never got to meet Steve, but my distinct impression from his posts here mirror what those who have met and know him- a gentleman of the highest order. RIP sir.

Well that pulls at your heart strings some.

So sorry to hear this.

Praying for comfort with his friends and family.

Thank you for the tribute and letting us know - very well done. I am sorry for you that you have lost a good buddy.

The couple of times I was fortunate enough to meet him he was a true pleasure to speak with. I think of him most every time I have to look for a bottle cap opener and chuckle thinking about a "church key" story he told.

May he rest in peace and best wishes for his family.

Sincere condolences to all of his family and friends at their loss.

Condolences to his family and Buddies.

My condolences, I never met Steve, but he was always a fine contributor to the fire

Sounds like a great man and a blessing to be around.
Hopefully his love for the outdoors will be passed on to his family and carried on.

Sorry to learn of his passing.
Godspeed, Steve.

Rest In Peace 7x57Steve...…….My son and I had the absolute pleasure of sharing lunch with Steve, Pugs and Issac in a DC pub back in the day. There was a fourth man with that group of three, I do not recall who that was.

I recall Steve as being a very kind man, as well as Pugs and Issac. Our world has lost a special person. Thank You for sharing this news Pugs.

Pat

Life is too short

Pugs, Steve was lucky to have you as a friend. I’m sure he felt the same way. RIP Steve.
Hasbeen

Rest in peace,sir.

Just read this.... I'm so sorry for the loss of this man.. While I never met him, it appears he was a true gentleman... RIP.

I’ll make the same observation others have; a full life well lived

Vaya con Dios.

My remembrance is from the last 24HCF TN hog hunt. Steve was a gentleman, even when swatting my paws when I was trying to filch the freshly fried bacon he was using to assemble the atomic buffalo turds for our feast. Our groups have never eaten so well as we did that trip, when we were in charge of ALL the victuals.

Having taken a hog earlier in the hunt, I was coming off the "hill" on the 2nd day when I ran into Steve, who was on his way in. I'd seen a sounder lounging in a ravine a while earlier, so I took Steve over to where they'd been. I suppose it would've been my first experience at, "guiding". Alas, they spooked before he was able to get a shot off.

A while later, though, he tagged a nice boar at the very apex of the property, in a spot I'd walked only hours before and thought was empty. He hunted to the end, for sure.

This turdlike member is raising a glass to him now (yes, at 9:47am EDT ) , and will do so again at the next 24HCF gathering.

Happy Trails, Steve.

FC

Godspeed Steve!


I think he attended the one Campfire hog hunt I went to in Tenn.

Mike

Sorry to hear this. I had the privilege of meeting Steve at the TN hog hunt, as said many times earlier he was a gentleman. My condolences to his family.

Our 'fire community has lost a good one. RIP.

I counted Steve among my friends too, but only knew him the last few years. He was a Gentleman of the First Water, and generous to a fault. His stories, and the delight he took in telling them, will stay with me for the rest of my days on this mortal coil. I miss him terribly.

I had to wait a couple days to post here as my eyes started misting over every time I sat down to do this.

We're celebrating his life tomorrow with two of his favorite things: beer and soup!

All,

The family had a very nice celebration of life event yesterday evening with a good showing of Campfire folks including Roof, Shooterr. Joe Martin, Stonecutter and Gnoahhh. A few IPAs were drank, stories we're told and toasts to Steve made.

I had mailed this thread to the family and they were astonished and pleased at how many folks had reached out with their condolences and memories. Thanks for posting.

Pugs, you are an exceptional example of a Gentlemen, and a good man.

And I consider it an honor to call Pugs one of my closest friends... Well done.

RIP Steve sorry a bit late on this!

The only man that ever got me to drink brandy. See you soon amigo

Rest easy my friend, it was a sad day, but not a bad day. Every Thursday during mowing season, I stood at the Island in Steve's kitchen, he wasn't much for sitting, drinking a Heavy Seas Loose Cannon, or two. Often with a bowl of Potato soup. He was a man of Faith, and I think he would take Pslam 118:24 to heart. "This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it." I await the day, Steve,that we will rejoice and be glad together, once again, and you can tell me the story of how you beat Polio as a child. I like happy endings.