Stephen Rader

Stephen "Steve" Lowell Rader, 47, Madison, Wis., passed away Friday (5-24-13) after a bicycle accident in Madison.

Steve was born April 14, 1966 in Missoula, Mont. He grew up in Lincoln, Neb., graduating from Lincoln Southeast High School in 1984, where he was an all-state tennis player.

Steve graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 with a degree in computer science, and shortly thereafter began working for the University, providing computer and technical support for various academic and research efforts. This included serving as manager of technical computing services for the Space and Science Engineering Center, and as systems and network manager for the High Energy Physics group. In 2010, Steve was named director of computing for the University's Department of Physics.

In addition to his family and professional career, Steve's passions included computers and coding, cycling, competitive badminton, tennis, bike polo, snowboarding, music, yoga, radio controlled aircraft and fresh water aquaria.

Family includes his wife, Vicki Tobias; daughter, Ariella Rader; parents, Benjamin and Barbara Rader of Lincoln, Neb.; and sister Anne Rader, her husband Ken Gatter, and her sons Alex and Aiden Gatter, all of Lake Oswego, Ore.

A memorial service and reception will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 1 at Cress Funeral Home, 3610 Speedway, Madison, Wis.

In lieu of flowers, the family is establishing a fund in Steve's name at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Memorials can be made payable to the UW Foundation in memory of Steve Rader, US Bank Lockbox 78807, Milwaukee, WI 53278 or go to www.supportuw.org/giving .