Stephen John Bennett

A loving father and partner, Stephen Bennett (Steve) suffered a heart attack while riding his unicycle and later passed away peacefully at Foothills Hospital on 18 February 2024, surrounded by family. Steve was born on 1 September 1959 in Clapham, England to Beryl and Peter Bennett. In 1965 the family moved to Ottawa where Steve attended public school. During his high school years, Steve competed in long distance running and cross-country skiing on the school team. With his cousin Dave Bennett, who Steve competed and trained with, he set a personal best of 2 hours, 43 minutes at the 1978 National Capital Marathon.

Steve obtained a B.Sc in Engineering Geophysics from Queen’s University in 1982. While working on his engineering degree, Steve was also a member of the Queen’s cross country ski team for three years. Upon graduation, he moved to Calgary and enjoyed a rewarding career as a seismic processor and programmer. He worked at Seiscom Delta United and Kelman Seismic Technology before founding his own successful company, Calcoulee Corporation, where he independently developed and leased high-end seismic processing modules. 

Steve was a celebrated athlete and remained active throughout his entire life. Along with running and cross-country skiing, he excelled in speed skating, windsurfing, and swimming. For his 60th birthday, he reached his goal of swimming 6,000 meters using the butterfly stroke (his favorite). During the pandemic he took on the challenge of learning the unicycle, and completed the Goat Creek Trail from Canmore to Banff (~20km) in the summer of 2023.

Steve was known for his focused pursuit and mastering of any hobbies and activities that caught his interest. He taught his children about carpentry, raising pheasants, fishing, survival skills, and camping. Later in his life, he became an award-winning beekeeper while also painting, sculpting and completing building projects on his property. Steve was always ready to lend a hand on any of his friend’s projects. Steve is survived by his mother Beryl, his sister Patricia, his partner Stella, and his children: Jenna and Stanley.

A Celebration of Steve’s Life will be held at the Cochrane RancheHouse (101 RancheHouse Rd, Cochrane, AB) on Sunday, 19 May 2024. Guests may arrive at 1330hrs (1:30 pm) and the service will start at 1400hrs (2:00 pm). Dress is casual, and guests are welcome to hike in Cochrane Ranche after the service. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation (https://grpf.ca/donate-to-grpf/), one of Steve’s favourite unicycling and hiking parks, in memory of Stephen Bennett.