Stephen Lawrence Jenks
Boise, ID – Stephen Lawrence Jenks
June 7, 1942 August 8, 2025
Stephen Lawrence Jenks devoted father, proud grandfather, decorated
FBI agent, lifelong sports fan, and legendary storyteller died
peacefully on August 8, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, surrounded by love,
just the way he would have wanted. He was 83.
Born in Hanover, New Hampshire, on June 7, 1942, to Grace and Lawrence
Jenks, Steve grew up with the kind of childhood that becomes a
lifelong touchstone: car trips with his parents to Vermont, an
unshakable sense of community, and a home filled with warmth and
humor. His sister, Linda, and his many friends remember him as
endlessly curious and unfailingly kind.
A gifted athlete and natural leader, Steve attended Hanover High
School, where he served as class president for two years, co-captained
the football team, captained the baseball team, and was named
All-State in both sports. He believed sports were a “microcosm of
life,” teaching lessons about teamwork, resilience, and respect
lessons he carried with him forever. He also loved English, could
still recite poetry he learned in junior high well into his eighties,
and especially treasured the poem “Lasca,” which his father used to
recite to him before bed.
Steve earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of
New Hampshire, where he served as a dorm counselor and sat on the
Dean’s Advisory Council. He went on to graduate from the University of
Texas School of Law in 1968, where he was active in the International
Law Society. While still in law school, he applied to the FBI a
decision that would shape the rest of his professional life.
In November 1968, Steve entered the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
His early assignments included organized crime in Detroit and foreign
counterintelligence in San Francisco, before moving to the Palo Alto
office, where he would remain until his retirement in 1997. Over his
31-year career, Steve worked some of the most high-profile cases of
his time, including the Patty Hearst kidnapping. He traveled
internationally for intelligence work, made lifelong friends in the
Bureau, and earned deep respect for his integrity, skill, and
humanity. One of his proudest moments was meeting a man he had once
arrested years later, in a shopping mall who thanked Steve for
helping him turn his life around. They stayed in touch for many years,
a testament to Steve’s belief that law enforcement was about service,
compassion, and making lives better.
It was in San Francisco, while on Easter vacation, that Steve met Gail
Giegerich, his cousin’s roommate. Their first outing was a picnic in
Sausalito. A few years later, after being transferred to San
Francisco, he called her again, and this time the connection stuck.
They married in 1976 and welcomed their daughter Amy in 1977.
Fatherhood became his proudest role. Whether coaching Little League,
cheering at horse shows, or taking Amy to “Lair of the Bear” family
camp each summer, Steve was fully present the kind of dad who showed
up early, stayed late, and brought the jokes.
After decades in Los Altos Hills, Steve moved to Boise, Idaho in March
2024 to be closer to Amy and his beloved grandchildren, Lily and
Oliver. Steve embraced this final chapter with joy Sunday brunches
with Lily and Oliver (always eggs Benedict), driving Ollie around on
his scooter, and countless small moments that mattered most. He moved
into Elkhorn Assisted Living at Touchmark, where he found friendship,
care, and plenty of opportunities to charm both residents and staff.
Even in his final days, he struck up conversations with strangers,
delighted to discover a shared connection – like the Kenyan caregiver
who inspired him to try out his (very limited) Swahili.
Steve was a man of boundless generosity. He gave quietly and
consistently, always putting others’ needs before his own. He
treasured people from all walks of life, made friends wherever he
went, and remembered the small details that made others feel seen. He
was also famously enthusiastic about food known to clean not just
his plate, but anyone else’s within reach and was a devoted San
Francisco 49ers season ticket holder for more than 51 years, cheering
loudest for Joe Montana, Steve Young, and Jerry Rice.
Steve is survived by his wife, Gail; daughter, Amy; sister, Linda Ali
Mollah; cousin, Marsha Badagliacca; and his adored grandchildren, Lily
Elizabeth Jenks and Oliver Stephen Jenks. He was preceded in death by
his parents, Grace (Barrows) and Lawrence Jenks.
We will miss his charm, humor, kindness, unwavering devotion to
family, and the way he could make you laugh even in the most serious
moments. Steve’s life was defined not only by his remarkable
accomplishments, but by his generosity, loyalty, and the deep love he
shared with his family and friends. His grandchildren were his pride
and joy his lasting legacy.
Steve’s life will be honored in ways that reflect the places and
people he loved most. Some of his ashes will be sent to his lifelong
best friend, Drew Cunningham, in Hanover, New Hampshire, to be spread
at his favorite pond where Steve grew up, a place of life-long
meaning. We will also hold a private family ceremony at the top of
Camel’s Back in Boise, Idaho a place our family visits often and
where we can remember him with every hike to the summit. In addition,
we will create a memory book filled with stories from his friends and
family, a keepsake for his beloved grandchildren so that they will
always carry his humor, kindness, and incredible life with them.
Memorial donations may be made to Equality Now (equalitynow.org), a
cause close to his heart.