Feb. 24, 1930 – Aug. 17, 2014

On Aug. 17, 2014, Stephen H. “Steve” Sosnick, Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Economics at UC Davis, died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 84 years old.

Galya “Gale” Sosnick, Steve’s wife of 63 years, was with him when he died. Steve also is survived by daughters Beryl of Napa and Elika of Ross, sons Randall of Mill Valley and Tobin of Chicago, and his five grandchildren Erin, Greer and Kira Rosenbaum, Loren Sosnick and Dorian Williams.

On his 17th birthday, Steve entered UC Berkeley. There he received a Phi Beta Kappa key and was active in debate, chess and the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity. After graduation, Steve married Gale and went on to receive a Ph.D. in economics from UC Berkeley.

In 1957, after three years as an instructor at Princeton University, Steve was recruited by UC Davis. There he would spend the next 34 years as a professor in the Department of Agricultural economics, bicycling to work every day — rain or shine — and never missing a single class.

Steve’s research initially focused on commodity auctions, agricultural cooperatives and the marketing of dairy products and fruit. In 1971, Steve spent a year studying agricultural auctions at the Vrije Universiteit in The Netherlands. In 1974, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Iowa Mission to Peru recruited him for 18-months’ service with Peru’s Ministry of Agriculture.

Reflecting his enduring intellectual curiosity, Steve’s publications covered a broad range of topics, including seasonal farm workers, government budgeting, comparative economic systems, antitrust economics, municipal expenditures, stock splits, methods of depreciation and non-stoppage strikes. He taught courses in agricultural marketing, microeconomic theory, welfare economics, industrial organization, corporation finance and managerial accounting. In addition, Steve initiated courses at UCD in tax accounting and agricultural labor.

After his formal retirement from UCD in 1991, Steve became the CEO of Toy World Inc. — a company with a dozen toy and game stores in California and Oregon. In 2003, Steve switched from full-time work to various part-time activities, including teaching a seminar at UCD and writing a book on election systems.

Steve was an active member of the Davis community. He played volleyball several evenings per week through his 79th year, usually with players less than half his age. He was also a Davis city chess champion and later a successful duplicate bridge player. Steve founded the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and was a generous supporter of both local and international humanitarian causes.

A memorial service to celebrate Steve’s life is planned at the Unitarian Church of Davis on Sept. 20 at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, friends may send a donation in Steve’s honor to the American Friends of Magen David Adom at www.afmda.org or to a local charity of their choice.

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