By Anne W. Semmes
With next week comes the first day of summer in the life of Stephen “Steve” Walko, and the week following will be Walko’s celebration day, on June 27, as the Greenwich Sentinel’s 2024 Awardee. So how do his gifts shine in summertime – first off, he’s Vice Commodore of the Indian Harbor Yacht Club, having joined the Club back in 2000. Was that Vice Commodore role this Super Lawyer of Connecticut and managing partner of Ivey Barnum and O’Mara had envisioned?
“I am not sure that was ever, even most recently, in my vision,” tells Walko. “I had served as counsel under a couple of previous Commodores, and I loved helping in that arena – I thought I was more pigeonholed for that.”
But surely, he was a candidate with his leadership roles in the Greenwich community, his chairing building committees of town schools, his serving in top roles of town government – and hadn’t he grown up on Greenwich shores?
“We were on the water a lot,” shares Walko, “mainly power boating, but my brother Dave and I also sailed.” And “That was just a place to go, especially back in the lack of cell phones – once you were out, you were out. You’re on a relatively small boat, ship, yacht, where you have to interact with either family or friends. And so, who you pick to go on your boat is a pretty important decision.”
Walko cites those on-the-water days as “some of the best memories” of his childhood. “Just being on the boat with my family, my brother, and friends, and whether it’s going to Captain’s Island and exploring, or swimming around, or having a picnic out there. That’s the area, that’s the passion.”
“Being close to water and smelling that salt air, there’s nothing like it,” he continues, “And at Indian Harbor, it’s that passion for boating and sailing that is so pervasive throughout. It is a place of significance in that regard, that it affords people, local people – not just from Greenwich as we have individuals at the club from the surrounding area that have this love of water, have this love for sailing, and have that comradery, which I think is important.”
“I can say this for sure,” chimes in Walko’s wife Alexandra “Alex” Walko, “Life with him is never dull, even after 23 years (as of June 2) of marriage!” But she adds a caveat, “It took forever for him to ask me out and when he finally did our first date was at Kelly’s Sea Level in Rye. Best hot dog I ever had.”
Alex’s mom, Nancy Lundy has her take on the Alex/Steve pairing. “Steve’s mom and matriarch of the family [Beatrice “Bea” Walko] and I mused early on about the prospects for this marriage between two strong personalities. It has thrived. They are a winning team that works tirelessly for family and community.”
Alex cites her husband’s strengths as what drew her to him. “He has priorities. He puts family, friends and his faith first. His work ethic is unparalleled and that means in the office, in the courtroom as well as in the backyard. He gives 100 percent of himself and in turn expects that of others.”
A favorite quote of Steve’s she shares comes from the Pittsburgh Steelers football team head coach [Steve’s dad, the late Albert Stephen Walko hailed from Pittsburgh with his family legacy being the passion for the Steelers] Mike Tomlin who said, “The standard is the standard.” “Stephen effectively leads by that example,” continues Alex. She believes, “this quality can be attributed to his parents who taught him to work hard for what he believes in and strive to always do his best. He does this selflessly.” She adds, “Whether that is helping to coach flag football, heading a building committee to build a new elementary school or sitting on the board of a nonprofit, the positive impact of his efforts big and small keep him going. Well, that and good food, camaraderie and plenty of fun.”
Steve’s mom Bea Walko who had served as Greenwich High School (GHS) Head of Student Activities had a front row seat of observing her son’s leadership ability in his senior year at GHS having chaired “a very successful SRO (senior production).” She describes her son as “a man of outstanding character” with qualities of “honesty, integrity, intelligence and loyalty.” But “Most of all Stephen is a man of faith whose love for his family is his strongest attribute.”
“Faith is one of those things that we rarely talk about,” says Walko, “but to many it is as important as anything else.” Walko’s family are members of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Byram, where he has served as president in years back. “It’s important to me,” he says, “It’s important to my family,” and he’s proud that his kids were baptized. “Their being regular church goers might be a bit of a stretch during these college years,” he says, “but they have faith. If it’s there as your bedrock, then it’s always there.”
“Steve is the most consistently principled person I know” is how John Horner describes his friend. “Whether it is in his legal career, his many roles as a public servant, or most importantly his personal relationships with friends and family, Steve always stands firm in his beliefs and navigates a complex world with unwavering integrity. He is the rare person in this world that I always know I can count on – but he will also tell me what I need to hear, not what I want to hear.”
So, lastly, for a further read on Sentinel Awardee Walko he was asked by this reporter a surprising question – what five things would he take with him if he were to be cast away on a desert island? Given some advance time, there was some deliberation. “My first response,” he admits, “I couldn’t come up with it. Should I be practical? There’s a large part of me that’s very pragmatic.” So, might he need a hunting knife, a magnifying glass, or “a set of matches?” But would those practical choices quite capture “the essence of a person?” He then segwayed to “what was important” to him, but realized, “There’s not a whole lot that’s important to me that is just a possession.”
What was important was, “The picture of the family would have to be top-notch, right at the top.” So, number one. Then, possibly a cross for his faith? “But I don’t need that to remind me of it,” he says, “Plus I could make a cross on this desert island.” Better to bring his Pittsburgh Steelers jersey for number two. He adds, “My brother and I actually have season tickets to the Steelers, which sounds crazy, but we do,”
For number three, “I’d bring a case of good old American bourbon. I haven’t figured out why I would use it or how I would use it.” And number four? “In this fantasy island thing, I would love it if I had my water skis that I could go water-skiing on. I know that requires additional items, but…and lastly, I would bring my old iPod there, which has a catalog of a lot of years of songs. So those are the five things.”
