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COLUMBUS, Ohio — The pest control industry mourns the loss of Jim Steckel, who passed away on Monday. He was 80.
Steckel was a longtime owner of Torco Pest and Termite Control, a successful regional pest control firm based in Columbus, Ohio, which he sold to Waste Management in 1988. Jim and son Scott Steckel also owned Ashland, Ohio-based Carothers Brothers and Zanesville, Ohio-based Elite Pest Control, which they sold to Varment Guard Environmental Services in 1996. At that time, Scott Steckel became the fifth partner with Varment Guard, while Jim Steckel came on board as an advisor.
The Steckel family has had a storied pest control history. Jim Steckel inherited Torco from his father, Dr. Henry “Doc” Steckel, whose father A.W.F. Steckel founded the firm in 1900. At the time, the company was called Tornado Manufacturing Co., and it produced rodent, roach and bed bug control products.
Jim Steckel joined both Torco and the National Pest Control Association in 1957 and served as NPCA president in 1970. That was the same year the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was formed and Steckel was instrumental in helping form EPA’s early pesticide policies. Steckel spent much of his presidency traveling back and forth to Washington, D.C., on a monthly basis, to testify before the House and Senate Agriculture Committees. In a 1989 interview with PCT, Steckel recalled of that experience, “I think probably the critical thing that year was the demand of the Environmental Protection Agency for technical training – and training of technicians – and the NPCA’s efforts to meet that demand.”
Steckel also was a decorated veteran, serving in the U.S. Navy as a pilot during WWII and in the Naval Reserve during the Korean War, retiring as a Commander. Steckel graduated from Denison University, where he played football for Woody Hayes, who later became a legendary coach at Ohio State.
In 1989, Steckel was recognized as a member of the inaugural PCT/Syngenta Leadership Class.
In reflecting on his father’s personal and professional accomplishments, Scott Steckel said, “Jim has had such a full and rich life where he knew no stranger and was constantly involved in the lives of the community around him.”
Jim Steckel is survived by wife Gloria, daugther Kathie, and Scott. The funeral service will be Friday 14, at noon at at the Dublin Community Church in Dublin, Ohio, immediately followed by a brief graveside service at Glen Rest Cemetery in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions be made to the Dublin Community Church or The Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60601-7633 – www.alz.org (link:Donate). An online guestbook can be signed at www.dispatch.com/obituaries
Addtional source: Columbus Dispatch