UPDATED Sept. 20: The family of Steven Trvalik held a celebration of life in his memory on Sept. 17, 2023, in the town where he had spent nearly all his too-short days. The lifelong athlete and longtime Arlington resident had turned 26 just a few days before he died July 29 in a hiking accident in his recently adopted state of California. According to a website created by his family, "Tragically, Steven's life was cut short in a fateful incident while descending Tenaya Peak within the revered expanse of Yosemite National Park."
As described in an email from his sister Cady, "He grew up on Fairview Avenue [in Arlington] and attended Bishop Elementary School, Ottoson Middle School and Arlington High School. He played baseball and soccer through Arlington Little League and the Arlington Soccer Club and rowed for Arlington-Belmont Crew.
"He attended the Pleasant Street United Church of Christ.
"After finishing AHS, he attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute, from which he earned his bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. After graduating, he lived in Arlington, Medford and Somerville before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area in California.
"While still living in Massachusetts, he had worked at the Winchester Country Club and Mahoney's Garden Center while taking classes at Northeastern during summer breaks in high school and college.
"More than anything, he loved the outdoors -- biking, hiking, skiing and climbing were his greatest loves. He had also recently gotten into sailing and loved spending time on the Boston Harbor with his friends. Bicycle rides on the Minuteman Bike Path were a beloved family pastime from young childhood all the way through his mid-20s."
Additional details about his life, his surviving relatives and suggestions for memorial donations can be found here>>
This article was published Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, based on information from Allen Mortuary in Turlock, Calif., and provided by the Trvalik family, who also shared the photograph and links to further information. It was updated Sept. 20, 2023, to correct a possible misperception as to where the memorial event took place.
