Roland William Steadham

Roland William Steadham, age 67, passed away on January 27, 2026, in a tragic small-aircraft accident at Black Canyon Reservoir in Gem County. 

Roland was born on June 24th 1958 in New York City, New York, to Gladys Esther Rodrigues and James Roland Steadham. His mother, Gladys, was born and raised in Cuba. While working at the U.S. military base in Guantanamo, she met and married James, an American Naval sailor from Texas. Roland was Gladys’s only child and because James was frequently deployed, Spanish became Roland’s first language. He did not learn to speak English until he began grade school. Gladys later moved Roland and her mother to Miami, where Roland spent his childhood playing in the sand and surf of Miami Beach. When Roland was nine years old, Gladys relocated the family to Los Angeles. There, he developed a love for adventure, riding his bike throughout Los Angeles County. Roland graduated from Hoover High School and continued his education at Brigham Young University, the University of Utah and finishing his degree through  Mississippi State.

From the ages of 19-21, Roland served a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Venezuela. As a diligent and faithful missionary, he taught and baptized more than 150 converts and believed he continued to receive blessings throughout his life from his efforts in the mission field. 

Roland was the kind of man who made the world feel steadier—whether he was guiding Idaho families through storm after storm as Chief Meteorologist at KBOI 2 News, or quietly showing up for the people he loved. His forecasting career began in the early 80’s in Utah and took him to San Diego, Miami, back to Salt Lake City and Finally Boise. For decades, he was a trusted voice: deeply knowledgeable, calm under pressure, and genuinely excited about the beauty and power of weather. That excitement was contagious, and so was the reassurance he gave—especially when the skies turned dark.  

At home, Roland was first and always a devoted husband and father. He and his beloved wife, Erin Steadham, shared 35 years of marriage built on loyalty, laughter, and steadfast love. Roland was the proud father of six children—two sons and four daughters—and a grandfather of seven who looked forward to every visit, every story, every milestone.

Friends and colleagues often noted that he spoke of his family often and with unmistakable tenderness—rarely having a conversation without sharing his love for Erin, his children, and his grandchildren.  Roland was not only skilled and accomplished; he was deep, loyal, and genuinely present with the people in his life.  

Roland lived his faith sincerely. A faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he was deeply spiritual, prayerful in his decisions, and anchored by a quiet trust in God. He and Erin loved teaching in Primary together and were looking forward to retirement and being able to work in the temple once again. Roland didn’t need to be loud about his beliefs—he lived them through humility, integrity, and the way he treated people.

He also lived with a rare kind of youthful joy. Roland loved adventure and the outdoors—scuba diving, kayaking, whitewater rafting, skydiving, wakeboarding, snow skiing, dirt biking, four-wheeling—anything that reminded him life was meant to be experienced, not merely observed.  

And Roland didn’t only love the wide-open world—he loved the living things in it. He was an animal-lover through and through. Friends shared how he adored his cats—he had five—and how he’d talk about going home to put a cat on his lap. His dog was such a familiar companion that he sometimes accompanied Roland to the station and sat nearby while forecasts were being done.  As a child, Roland had a pet rooster named Pepe, and a pet tortoise named Chewy that he cherished—early signs of the tenderness he carried all his life.

And then there was the sky—his second home. Roland was an incredibly skilled pilot, with 5,000 hours of flight time and was respected in multiple aviation communities around the country. In Southern California, he towed banners in an open cockpit biplane along the beaches and flew a Marchetti for Air Combat USA, as a dog fight instructor. In South Florida, he gave aerobatic joyrides in a Pitts S-2B and Extra. And flew skydivers in a King Air and Twin Otter. In Utah, he soared with oxygen 18,000 feet above the Wasatch Front in his soar plane. He also flew jumpers in a King Air and took up the skydiving sport himself for many years. Those who flew with Roland describe him with the kind of respect pilots don’t give lightly: highly skilled, meticulous, and deeply safety-minded. Roland did his preflight check 2-3 times and added extra safety parameters to whatever type of flying he was doing. Friends remembered how he always pointed out hazards—especially power lines—earning a reputation as one of the safest pilots they knew.  It was very simple, if Roland didn’t feel that something could be done safely, he wouldn’t do it. 

Roland also believed knowledge should be shared. He mentored weather enthusiasts and young pilots and supported students in both fields whenever he could. Just days before his passing, he visited aviation students and spoke with heartfelt enthusiasm about flight—encouraging them to pursue it and to see the world from a different perspective.  

Through his online aviation work and the videos he created on his Plane Crazy Channel (@PlaneCrazyChannel), Roland opened a door for countless viewers—inviting them into the cockpit with humility, humor, and a teacher’s heart. His audience didn’t just learn from him; they felt his steadiness, his curiosity, and his joy. 

Roland was also a retired reserve deputy sheriff with San Diego County. He put himself through the police academy and volunteered each week for ten years. He had a deep respect for the law, the armed forces and loved his country. 

Roland’s life was defined by love—love for his Savior Jesus Christ, love for Erin, love for his children and grandchildren, love for friends, love for his country, love for animals, love for the mountains, rivers and oceans, and love for the wide open sky. He was humble, fun-loving, adventurous, honest and dependable. And though his absence feels impossible to those he leaves behind, the essence of who he was will continue to circulate in their hearts like energy in the atmosphere-never ceasing and forever transforming their lives for generations to come.

Roland is survived by his wife, Erin; his children: Scott, Corinne, Caitlyn, Storm, Summer, and Sierra Grace; his daughters-in-law Angela Steadham and Paige Leatham; his sons-in-law Andrew Smart and Danny Mozingo; and his grandchildren: Joshua, Theodore, Samuel, Oliver Roland, Alice, Valerie and Dolly Drew; along with extended family and a wide circle of dear friends across the country who loved him and will miss him deeply.

A memorial service will be held 11:00am, Saturday, February 21, 2026 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1133 N. Park Lane in Eagle. After the memorial service, friends and family will be invited to gather and celebrate Roland’s life with refreshments and to share their cherished memories of Roland.

To attend the service virtually please visit https://youtube.com/live/3vPQkJ_Yx-s?feature=share

Services are under the direction of Bowman Funeral Parlor, Garden City, Idaho. 208.853.3131