Page 2 August 26, 2021 EL SEGUNDO HERALD
Obituaries
George E. Stevens passed away peacefully
on August 7, 2021 in El Segundo, CA.
George was born in Warren, OH on June
29, 1943. When his father was relocated to
California for work in 1955, the family decided
to settle in El Segundo, where he would
spend the rest of his life raising his family,
building the family business, and supporting
the community he loved.
After graduating from El Segundo High
School in 1961, George remained in El Segundo
and worked for the airline TWA. In 1973, he
opened a small pool hall, one of his favorite
pastimes, on Grand Avenue, that served
sandwiches and beer. The Stick and Stein
Saloon (stick for pool and stein for beer) was
born and quickly grew into a popular spot.
He expanded twice, once in 1975, and then
again years later in 1994, when George was
propelled by the nostalgia factor to expand
and move the restaurant to a new location on
Sepulveda, where it was renamed, the “Stick
and Stein Family Sports Grill.”
The history, people, legacy families, and
nostalgia of his hometown of El Segundo
always gave him an interesting story to tell.
When George was a kid, he played tag on the
empty plot of land where the new Sepulveda
location of the Stick & Stein later stood. Rob’s
Restaurant was originally built on the lot,
where George would come for dinner with his
parents. He was a regular at the Jolly Roger,
after it replaced Rob’s. He even hired former
staff from the Jolly Roger after it closed, to
work at the new location. In the dining room,
a train circling above the booths listed El
Segundo businesses on each of the boxcars.
A photo display of all the fighter airplanes
built on Douglas Street during World War II,
and a historic chronology of the South Bay
and photos hung from the walls. The table
settings had printed place mats
of the 1950s pages of the local
paper, the El Segundo Herald. The
adjacent dining area was named
“El Segundo’s Field of Dreams,”
where framed articles from the
opening of Dewey Weber’s surf
shop in the ‘60s adorned the walls,
along with a pair of wooden seats
from Ebbets Field in Brooklyn,
where the Dodgers first played.
Photos of George Brett and other
El Segundo High School alumni were part of
the extensive memorabilia collection. George’s
real pride, before entering the billiards area,
was the banister of the stairway leading to
the party facility, “The Cheap Seats,” that was
made of baseball bats.
“The Cheap Seats” was a
phrase he coined after his favorite
spots to watch local youth sports.
For Eagle and Babe Ruth baseball
games at Rec Park’s Stevenson
Field, it was behind left field,
Eagle football and soccer games
was near the football field’s end
zone, and his favorite Cheap Seats
spot at the Del Mar racetrack was
at the west end general admission
area. George often enjoyed participating as a
line judge for Eagles football home games.
Even if none of his kids or grandkids were
playing, you would still find him attending
football, baseball and basketball games, home
or away, always supporting the school and local
teams. George also coached youth baseball
for many years and enjoyed every minute of
it. He loved the kids he coached, wanting to
instill more than just baseball skills in their
practices and games. Teamwork, sportsmanship,
and a genuine love of the game were all
Police Reports
George Stevens
Love Thy Neighbor
Dear El Segundoans,
The Herald staff and I only know so many El Segundoans,
but we want to learn about more of you. With 8,000
residents, we’re sure there are some gems we may have
overlooked or not been aware of them. Do you have an
interesting friend, neighbor or student? With most of El
Segundo sports and events on hold, we are looking to do
more El Segundo residents’ profiles. All you have to do
is ask their permission and send us
their contact information. Of course,
if you find yourself fascinating, send
us your information too.
– Best to you all. HM.
Send your suggestions in
to letters@heraldpublications.com
Please have your nominee’s approval before you submit them as a nominee.
a part of what his players learned.
George recognized the importance
of playing sports for all youth,
always doing what he could to
support and sponsor any child
who wanted to join athletics in
the community, and even helped
resurrect the El Segundo High
School Booster Club. Because
of his longstanding support and
contributions to youth and local
school sports, George later
received the Lifetime Gold Card from El
Segundo High School (ESHS) in 1990, allowing
him to enter all home games for free.
He was also recognized by El Segundo Little
League’s 2014 Opening Day Ceremony for
playing on one of the first teams
since its inception. He even still
holds an ESHS 1961 record for
the Track team in Pole Vaulting.
George was also named
Businessman of the Year by the
City of El Segundo for creating
a space out of the love for
his community, where people
could celebrate birthdays and
anniversaries, graduations, class
reunions, retirements, and everything
in between. The Stick held countless
youth baseball, softball and soccer team
parties, many teams he sponsored, along
with Saturday breakfast buffets to support
the ESHS football team, while they viewed
game tapes from the night before.
George also loved the racetrack and summers
in Del Mar, CA. He was an avid surfer,
was always “soaking rays,” “handicapping
the ponies,” and loved to exercise, including
running, cycling, and swimming. In 1993, on
his 50th birthday, he successfully cycled and
ran 105 miles, from Del Mar to El Segundo,
in one day. “You can’t win sittin’ in a chair,”
as he would say. He was also known to tell
a story, or two, and could always name the
year of that golden oldie on the radio.
The Stick & Stein closed its doors in
March 2011, and George aptly decided to
leave “Thanks for the Memories, 1973-
2011” on the parking lot marquee for the
town and patrons, to show his appreciation
of their 38 years of support. It remained for
nearly a decade.
The Stick, old and new, held so many of
life’s special memories for so many people,
and other than his children and grandchildren,
is George’s proudest achievement.
His personality and sense of humor were
larger than life and he has left a huge void,
not only with his family and friends, but
with the City of El Segundo.
Thanks for the Memories, 1943-2021,
George, you will be deeply missed.
He is survived by Judi Stevens (ESHS
1964), daughters Traci (John) Sellens (ESHS
1978), Nikki Stevens (ESHS 1986), and Noelle
(John) Munn (ESHS 1990), his son Chad
(ESHS 1988), and Chad’s wife Heidi (ESHS
1989), his sister Jane Stevens Waller (David),
and his grandchildren Kristin Sellens (ESHS
2003), Trevor Sellens (ESHS 2004), Steven
Sellens (ESHS 2012), James Sellens (ESHS
2013), Tanner Stevens (ESHS 2014), Taylor
Stevens (ESHS 2017), Tatum Stevens (ESHS
2019) and Tucker Stevens (ESHS 2023).
No service will be held at his request.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made
to the George Stevens Memorial Scholarship
for El Segundo High School graduating
seniors at gofundme.com/f/GeorgeStevens-
ScholarshipESHS, or the Pancreatic Cancer
Action Network at pancan.org/donate. •
Community Briefs
Monday, Aug 16th
One male adult was detained at 0721 hours
from the HPD jail and transported to Harbor
UCLA hospital for a 72-hour psychiatric
evaluation.
One male adult was arrested at 1128 hours
from the 600 block of North Pacific Coast
Highway for shoplifting.
A vandalism report was taken at 1236
hours from the 800 block of East Pine Avenue.
Unknown suspect(s) vandalized the
victim’s vehicle.
A burglary (commercial) report was taken
at 1314 hours from the 300 block of North
Pacific Coast Highway. The suspect entered
the parking garage of the business
A traffic accident (no injuries) report was
taken at 1751 hours from Aviation Boulevard
and El Segundo Boulevard, vehicle versus
vehicle.
One male adult was arrested at 1902
hours from the 1800 block of East Rosecrans
Avenue for conspiracy to commit burglary
and felony evading.
One adult was arrested at 1902 hours from
the 1800 block of East Rosecrans Avenue
for conspiracy to commit burglary, criminal
threats, receiving stolen property, resisting
arrest, carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle
and a prior felony conviction for carrying a
loaded firearm.
One female adult was arrested at 1902
hours from the 1800 block of East Rosecrans
Avenue for conspiracy to commit burglary.
A petty theft report was taken at 1742
hours from the 700 block of South Pacific
Coast Highway. The two suspects stole
items and exited the store without paying
for them
A vandalism report was taken at 2129
hours from the 600 block of Vista Del Mar.
The suspect damaged the victim’s vehicle
An online report was taken at 0303 hours
See Police Reports, page 8
City of El Segundo and
LA Kings to Celebrate Completion
of Roller Hockey Rink
On Thursday, August 26, 2021 the City of
El Segundo and the Los Angeles Kings are
holding a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate
the completion of the city’s roller hockey rink
renovation project made possible through the
LA Kings support and $75,000 donation. The
El Segundo Inline Hockey Association (ESIHA)
will host a youth hockey clinic immediately following
the ceremony. The City of El Segundo’s
outdoor roller hockey rink was built in 1997 at
Recreation Park to accommodate the fast-growing
sport of roller hockey. Over the decades the
facility deteriorated due to frequency of usage
and needed extensive repairs to remain open.
In 2018, the City of El Segundo approached
the LA Kings about a partnership and donation
to support a roller hockey rink improvement
project. In April 2019, the city and the LA
Kings entered into a donation and license
agreement that allows the LA Kings to install
graphics at the facility and in return, the LA
Kings donated a total of $75,000 to support the
improvements project. Construction began April
19, 2021 and was completed on July 23, 2021.
Art + Dine Summer Series Coming
to Downtown El Segundo
The City of El Segundo Community Services
Department invites you to visit the 200 block
of Richmond Street in Downtown El Segundo
on Friday evening, August 27, from 7 p.m. to
10 p.m. to experience Art + Dine: A Friday
Evening Series. Two artists will set up a “studio”
for diners to watch as they create art of the spot.
The Art + Dine: A Friday Evening Series is a
pilot program designed to enhance the outdoor
dining experience and supported by the Arts and
Culture Advisory Committee and the Cultural
Development Program. This Friday, Michael
C. Hsiung (illustrator) and Miki Yokoyama
(artist) will be featured. If you have question,
please contact Cultural Arts Coordinator Sam
Lee at 310-524-2771 or slee3@elsegundo.org.
El Segundo Art Walk
One Night Only
This year the El Segundo Art Walk will
be held one night only on Saturday, August
28. A self-guided public art experience with
over 40 artists in 30 Downtown venues. Art
Walk activities are taking place on Main,
Eucalyptus and Franklin streets, visitors are
encouraged to arrive early and stroll through
the different exhibitions and pop-up galleries •
“Alone, we can do so little;
together, we can do so much.”
– Helen Keller