Parades, Festivals and Fun
Every year, Morgan Hill hosts its
Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting
celebration. According to Kiwanis Club
member Mary Lou Conragan, “People
love the countdown as Steve and Santa
address the crowd and light the tree.
It’s just one example of all that he does,
coming out to events and making him-
self available to the community.”
Steve is also known for being a
good sport, from dunk tanks to pie-
throwing contests, he’s done it all for
the good of Morgan Hill. “Racing tri-
cycles around the CCC to promote the
Amgen Tour was fun,” he joked. “I was
pedaling along, expecting [MHUSD
Superintendent] Steve Betando to pass
me, but evidently his trike
broke down!”
The Challenge of Governing
“The biggest challenge is public
engagement,” Steve said. “Our citizens
need a basic understanding of how
local government works and the issues
at hand so we can make informed
decisions together, and then move the
City forward.”
“The big issues are mostly around
growth. Bringing more jobs, growing
our economy and reducing commutes
will make for a happier community.
We’ve got our Economic Blueprint with
measurable outcomes and two fantastic
people, Edith Ramirez and John Lang,
working on it. I don’t see big companies
like Google moving here, but we
can attract companies in their
supply chains.”
“One thing that’s making a difference
is the ambience of our downtown
attracting people to spend time here.
As businesses see this, they’ll consider
Morgan Hill.”
Looking ahead, Steve said, “We
must come together as a region,
including South San Jose, and be
aware of what’s going on in the state
legislature. They’re proposing laws that
violate local control. We’re working
cooperatively on meeting State housing
demands. And talking about transporta-
tion issues like the High-Speed Rail that
can divide our communities.”
50
Family Matters
The Tates have always treasured family
time and take great pride their children
and grandchildren.
Their son Greg works at Salesforce
in San Francisco, and his wife Jennifer
works at a startup.
Recalling his teen years, Greg said,
“We had a VW van. Dad did his own
maintenance, changing spark plugs and
the oil. He would ask me to help. He’s
curious and likes to understand how
things work. I’d watch him try to fig-
ure things out, and when he couldn’t,
I learned a few choice words too! We
had fun and he taught me that you
don’t have to know the answer, just
work through the problem, and it’s
okay to hit a few bumps along the way.”
The Tates’ daughter Stacy teaches
at St. Mary School in Gilroy and is
married to Keith Huddleston, an IT
Specialist. Their son Jared is working
on his bachelor’s degree and their
daughter Kylie attends CSU
Monterey Bay.
“When Jared was a baby, we lived
on El Toro Court,” Stacy said. “One day
Dad showed up at the door and said,
‘I’m on my way to work, can I come
in? I just need to brush my hair.’ And
I said, ‘Dad, you don’t need an excuse
to drop in and see the baby!’ He and
mom adore their grandkids and enjoy
them as individuals, wanting to know
what interests them and what they like
to do.”
Jared said of his grandfather, “He’s a
people person who respects others. His
being a city official opened my eyes to
serving the community and influenced
my decision to pursue a career as a
police officer.”
“Grandad’s proud when we do well,”
Kylie said. “He’ll say, ‘Keep up the good
work!’ Watching him has influenced my
interest in being a social worker.”
Next on the Agenda
Come January, Steve will continue his
involvement with Leadership Morgan
Hill, Rotary and the Interact Club, and
Friends of the Morgan Hill Library. In
addition, he wants to improve local
fundraising for the Boys & Girls Club.
Steve said he’s “definitely going to
get more active again.” In his younger
days, he completed more than 15 mara-
thons, including the Big Sur Marathon,
the grueling Run to the Sun up Mt.
Haleakala, and on his 50 th birthday, the
50-mile American River Run. Hip and
knee issues ended his running, but
Steve’s got plans to do more cycling.
Last but not least, there’ll be more
travel. “Jennifer and I are looking
forward to Portugal next year and a
cruise down the Mississippi in 2020.
We both like the river cruise concept.”
Here's to Our Man Tate!
Decades of Dedicated Service
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
Mayor of Morgan Hill (12 years)
Former member, Morgan Hill City Council (8 years)
Former member, City of Morgan Hill Planning Commission (7 years)
Committee member, Morgan Hill City/School District Liaison Committee
Council Liaison, Morgan Hill Youth Action Council and Library Culture & Arts Commission
Current member, Past President, Board of Directors, Santa Clara County Library JPA
Current member; Past President, Board of Directors, Cities Association of Santa Clara County
Current member, Past President, Peninsula Division of the League of California Cities
Alumnus; Past President, Board of Directors, Leadership Morgan Hill (2002-03)
Current member, Past President, Board of Directors, Morgan Hill Rotary Club (2003-04)
Board Member, Housing Trust of Silicon Valley (2005-2018)
President, Cities Association, Santa Clara County (2014)
Current Board member, Boys and Girls Clubs of Silicon Valley (2016)
Certificate of Recognition, Morgan Hill Centennial History Trail Co-chair (2005-06)
CRA Award of Excellence, Adaptive Reuse of the Historic Granary, Morgan Hill RDA (2006)
Allan McLeod Award, Commitment & Contribution to Interact Clubs, Rotary Int’l (2012)
Leadership Morgan Hill Distinguished Alumnus Award (2016)
Project Cornerstone Lifetime Asset Champion Award, YMCA (2017)
Year of Carbon-Free Power Recognition, Silicon Valley Clean Energy (2018)
Outstanding Philanthropist & Volunteer, Morgan Hill Community Foundation (2018)
december 2018-january 2019
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