Obituary of Steve Poulter

Steve Poulter, age 74, passed away peacefully after a long illness on January 30, 2024.

Steve grew up in Anamosa, Iowa and graduated from Iowa State University in Journalism and Mass Communications.  He was the Editor in Chief of the Iowa State Daily during the time of political upheaval during the Vietnam War.  He pursued his passion for journalism at the Des Moines Register and then the Minneapolis Star from 1972 to 1985.  He was a reporter, editor and later focused on technologies affecting mass media.

He left the newspaper business to obtain an MBA at St. Thomas University and form Electronic Publishers Inc., a company that developed custom PC based graphics and information delivery systems. Later, while at Gift Certificate Center, he led development of the most widely used kiosk system in the U.S.  He is a coholder of a patent for the system design underlying Target stores’ Club Wedd/Lullaby Registry. He formed Lakestone, Inc. in 1998 and worked as an independent software consultant until his retirement.

He spent many years rehabbing the homes he lived in.  The best part for him was the demolition phase.  He was an accomplished woodworker and his biggest project was redoing all the cabinetry in the kitchen (an 8 year project).  He was also very creative, collecting scraps of almost anything and making “Grandpa Art”.

He had a cabin in Fifty Lakes, MN that gave him tremendous joy.  He built a loon’s nest and raced to the lake each spring to make sure the nest was ready with fresh straw and anchored in the lake on time.  Often the loon pair were waiting for him and followed him out to the anchor site.  Fishing from his pontoon boat brought him great peace and tranquility.  A bucket list trip to Lake of the Woods for a guided fishing trip was completed in the last months that he was healthy enough to travel.  He also thoroughly enjoyed golf whether playing with friends in leagues or solo at dawn when the dew glistened on the course. His fondest memories included several trips to the Boundary Waters. 

He is survived by his wife, Anne; his children Kate (Tim), Lauren (Ryan), and Matt (Calla); stepchildren Nicole and Nate; grandchildren  Abby, Owen, Annika, Teddy, Julia, John, Edie, Cora and Ian; sister Alice and brother Dave (Jody).

A private family gathering to celebrate his life will be held at a later time.

In lieu of flowers, a donation to Habitat for Humanity Twin Cities (www.tchabitat.org) would be preferred.