Dave Steckley (#1296)
Dave Steckley (#1296) started collecting license plates in 1959 when his uncle urged him to save the license plates from his dad’s car. He joined ALPCA in 1972 when he saw a newspaper article about Canadian member Len Garrison’s collection and wrote a letter to him. Since that time, Dave has been a mainstay in ALPCA for over 50 years.
Dave’s journey in plate-collecting exemplifies the criteria of the Hall of Fame – helping new members, sharing knowledge, promoting the hobby, and giving themselves to the hobby freely. He has given of himself to develop the plate collecting hobby and hobbyists in the greater Toronto area his whole life. Hosting or co-hosting the annual Acton, Ontario meet since 2003, he has continuously and meticulously nourished this independent gathering of like-minded plate enthusiasts from a fledgling event to a must-attend meet of nearly 100 attendees. Since 2013, Dave has had a continuous involvement with the ALPCA awards program first as Display Judge, and since 2016, has been relied upon to get up on stage and present the awards to the winning members at the Saturday morning business meeting.
Dave is a consummate family man and civic-minded citizen. He earned a Masters of Science degree and spent a 39+ year career in the technical support, and regulatory affairs functions for an animal nutrition company and earned his professional license from the Ontario Institute of Agrologists. He is an accomplished choir singer and Vice Chair with the North Halton Community Singers and a dedicated parishioner of the Bethel Christian Reformed Church in his community.
New and old collectors alike can count on any interaction with Dave to feature his warm demeanor and self-effacing humility as a collector and friend. Especially noted is his passion in engaging new members, young or old, with knowledge of plates or the plate-collecting hobby – he has always been eager to share his eagle-eyed observations and listen to others’ points of view. It is a joy to share in his company, and continues to be a welcoming presence to hobby newcomers. For these reasons and more, ALPCA is thrilled to welcome its second Canadian member to the roster of its Hall of Fame, Dave Steckley.