Steven Baer

Steven Paul Baer, 66, passed away on the morning of December 25, 2025. A memorial gathering will take place from 10:00 AM to the hour of the funeral service at 11:00 AM on Monday, December 29, 2025 at City Church OTR, 106 W McMicken Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Born in Logansport, Indiana, on October 13, 1959, and raised in Chandler, Arizona, Steve attended Brown University to play football. It was there that he met his future wife, Donna Conaton. They married soon after graduation and enjoyed decades of marriage together, raising a family of ten in the Chicago suburbs and watching their grandchildren grow in size and number.

As a political activist, Steve was known to many as a man who could create movement where others found stalemate. At just 30 years of age he ran in the Republican gubernatorial primary in Illinois, exceeding all expectations by garnering 30% of the vote. His compassion for the voiceless led him to dedicate his talents and considerable portions of his career to pro-life efforts domestically, and humanitarian efforts internationally, notably in combating the deadly malaria disease in Africa and in advocating for the child and teenaged refugees of the Second Sudanese Civil War. While most of those he helped will never know his name, there are many thousands alive today because of his dogged determination. In his leisure time, Steve could regularly be found playing touch football or driveway basketball with his kids, jogging through local neighborhoods, or engaging in spirited debate with friends.

Steve is survived by his wife, Donna; his children, Chandler (Blake) Smith, Crane (Chantel), Davis (Randee), Trent (Rachael), Salem (Alex) Molina, Steven, Logan (Chrissy), Harrison, Kenton, and Prescott; his nineteen grandchildren; as well as his mother, Lynn Roberts and his brothers, Stanford Baer and Mark Baer. He is preceded in death by his father Paul William Baer.

While those who worked with him will remember Steve for his keen mind and his unflinching dedication to what he believed to be right, those who knew him best will remember him for his playful and downright silly moments with his kids, his fondness for bringing loved ones together to celebrate the holidays, and his lifelong pursuit of Christ, in whose loving and forgiving arms he is now resting.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to BLOC Ministries, 911 W. 8th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45203.

Friends and family are invited to the visitation and funeral services listed above. For more information or to send condolences, please post on the guestbook to this website or contact Trent Baer at baertrenton@gmail.com.