Dates
Debora “Debbie” Elaine Raby Steinbach of San Angelo passed into eternal life on June 8, 2026, at the age of 70, while in The Woodlands, Texas for a consult at MD Anderson. She was born on April 30, 1956 , in Wormleysburg, Pennsylvania, to parents Earl Steven Raby and Lillian Ruth Isenhower Raby, and older brother Steven “Pete” Isenhower Raby. In 1963, the family moved to San Antonio, Texas, where her father pastored First Evangelical United Brethren Church (which became Albright United Methodist Church (UMC) in 1968). Her brother “Pete” Raby remembers that they communicated best through games. She was a Monopoly pro at age 6, the first sign of the over-achieving that was to come. Debbie and Pete maintained a 25-year cribbage match.
Debbie graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in San Antonio in 1974 with four years of intense school choir and extra-curricular church music experience. She matriculated to Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, majoring in music education. Between excelling at her studies and dating Norman Phillip “Phil” Steinbach she whiled away her time with cross-stitch projects and cribbage games. She regularly challenged herself by auditioning for solos in university concerts, participating in Opera Theater, and adding German to her four years of French. That path was briefly interrupted by her marrying Phil on December 28, 1976, in San Antonio.
After a semester-break honeymoon and subsequent move to Houston, she completed her music degree at the University of Houston in 1979 and worked part-time at a fabric store where she made display garments, which she was permitted to keep after display. In her inimitable full-out fashion, she also reupholstered the headliner of Phil’s 1966 Chevy Corvair and tailored a suit for him while she was at it. A subsequent Houston job at a sheet music store that included bookkeeping/accounting tasks ultimately led her to take the college hours she needed to start the CPA licensing process. Debbie never gave up music, though, and was active in the choirs of every church she ever attended.
In November 1982, the Steinbachs moved to Austin, Texas and joined Bethany UMC. Debbie worked at Pena Swayze, CPA to accrue the supervised hours needed for licensing. They welcomed David Gracen Steinbach to their family in July 1984, and Debbie and Ann Andrews established a private accounting firm that allowed Debbie flexibility to spend time with David. That firm grew into Bargsley, Andrews, & Steinbach CPAs in Austin, TX.
Debbie participated in Bible studies at Bethany; served and lead through chancel choir, handbell choir, and praise team; served as that congregation’s treasurer and chair of the Finance Table for Rio Texas Annual Conference of the UMC; and participated in the Austin Emmaus/ Chrysalis Community as a retreat lay director and board representative. Meanwhile, Phil himself answered a call to ordained ministry in 2000. Together, they served Mertzon and Christoval UMCs; First UMC Yoakum and Hope UMC; Sierra Vista UMC, San Angelo; and First UMC, Brady, with Debbie commuting regularly to Austin for her CPA practice and participation in Austin area professional organizations. She also was a member of in the San Angelo Chamber Singers and chancel choir of First Presbyterian Church, San Angelo, their church home after Phil’s retirement.
Somewhere along the way, Debbie expanded her needlework interests to quilting. Validating her skills, she earned a blue ribbon at a local quilt show sponsored by the Tom Green County Stock Show & Rodeo. Upon her retirement from accounting in 2015 and moving full-time to San Angelo to be near her precious grandchildren, she felt a dearth of quality fabric, equipment, and notions. So she talked Phil into opening a quilt store (Quilting Quarters) and launching a Bernina dealership with her in 2019. Naturally, this required meticulous research and traveling to other stores around country to ensure her store was top quality and well-stocked. Together, they earned a Bernina-sponsored trip to Thailand in 2024 and served their local quilting community for seven years.
Debbie Steinbach epitomized the godly character of the Proverbs 31 woman. She served the Lord through lay ministry and her profession, and served her family through the ordering of their household. Foremost, Debbie loved her husband - supporting him through major career changes, contributing her unique gifts and talents rather than giving up her own interests and dreams, and cruising rivers and oceans with him. In addition, Debbie and Phil moved their parents with them more than once to care for them. Her brother Pete is grateful to Debbie for her support for him over the years as well. Debbie loved their son David and was not afraid to dispense very tough love to serve his best long-term interests. Debbie herself received the unexpected blessing of the expansion of her family to include her bonus daughter Tori Leigh Steinbach Miller and her grandchildren Nathan, Gracen, Ross, and Mallory. Debbie and Tori Leigh have held each other up and together through many trying times. Nathan cherishes memories of their trip to Disney World, where Jammy made every moment feel 10x more magical than it already was, constantly singing and spreading joy to every area they explored. Gracen appreciated his Jammy’s constant support for him in tennis, her wisdom and financial advice, and her constant love for all of them. Ross “made Jammy’s day” whenever he asked to go work with Tori Leigh at the quilt store, because Jammy was so happy to see him! He thinks of her and loves her every day. Mallory knew Jammy as an amazing sewist who always sewed dresses with Mallory even when she didn’t have to, and as amazing grandmother – loving, caring, and overall a good person.
Debbie is predeceased by her parents Stephen and Lillian Raby; and her in-laws, Norman and Sue Steinbach. She is survived by the love of her life, Phil Steinbach; her son, David Steinbach; her bonus daughter, Tori Leigh Steinbach Miller; and joy of her life—grandchildren Nathan, Gracen, Ross, and Mallory. She is also survived by her brother Pete Raby; her brother-in-law Stephen Steinbach, his wife Nancy, and their children. Keeping her memory alive are friends too numerous to name, from high school, college, work, and church.
For the blessing of the life and fellowship of Debbie Steinbach, we give you thanks O Lord