Every town has a homer, a person everybody knows. Every town has an individual who exemplifies the locale's values, makes the area a better place to live and impacts every life he or she touches.

In New Holland, Steve Loewen was that guy.

"He was called Mr. New Holland by a lot of people," said Mitch Dissinger, Loewen's close friend for 40 years. "He loved New Holland very much. That was one of the common denominators that he and I had. He was a big cheerleader for New Holland in all aspects. He was always big on how can we improve the town or save some of the buildings in town. He had his hands in a lot of projects. People would contact him for advice."

Loewen, Mr. New Holland, passed away on Nov. 3, 2025, at the age of 67. Loewen was a 1976 graduate of Garden Spot High School and a member of St. Stephen Reformed Church in New Holland.

Dissinger noted Loewen had been dealing with health issues. "He would call my wife and I almost every day and give us updates," Dissinger said. "At the last (New Holland Area Historical Society) meeting, Steve said, 'I want to talk. I just want to thank everyone for coming. I'm not feeling well. Take it away, Mitch.'"

"He went home and went to the hospital," continued Dissinger. "Then we got a call that he passed. We kind of knew it was coming, but it was a shock. Another chapter is closed; we lost a great cheerleader."

For many years, Loewen owned and operated the New Holland RadioShack at 331 E. Main St. Loewen was both a proponent of and an advocate for New Holland's downtown business district.

"Oh my, he touched a lot of lives," said Dissinger. "If you were sick, he'd try to visit you. He had a lot of teenagers working for him over the years. A lot of them he took under his wing and tried to instill values in them. He also had a heart of gold for senior citizens. He would help people out financially."

"When you would first meet him, he'd always make you feel comfortable," Dissinger added. "He'd make a joke about himself. He'd try to break the ice. He would try to encourage you. I swear he had a gift for that. He was very kind to you. He would always try to make you feel welcome in his presence. He was always thinking. He'd ask you questions that were off the wall or deep."

Loewen had been accepted to Penn State University when he was involved in a car accident in 1976. His mother, Louise, was killed, and a broken neck left Loewen a quadriplegic.

Loewen never went to college and spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair.

"He was always in a wheelchair, but we never saw him as being in a wheelchair," said Dissinger, a resident of New Holland. "Steve really never talked about it. He didn't want to talk about it because it didn't define who he was. He said he had some dark times, and he did struggle."

It was Loewen's and Dissinger's love for New Holland, entrepreneurship and local collectibles that united them as friends.

"Through the years, I just knew who he was," said Dissinger. "As I got older, I became interested in New Holland memorabilia and I would go to auctions and Steve was there, and we would bid against each other. Sometimes he would look over and say, 'You can have it," and stopped his bidding. And I'd do the same thing for him. One day he came over to me and said, 'Why are we doing this? Why can't we work together?' We had a lot of the same interests, and from that we became really good friends."

"He hopefully inspired everyone who came in contact with him, and not just those in his inner circle," added Dissinger. "He didn't let a wheelchair hold him back. He always said, 'My mouth and brain haven't stopped working.' He could still do some things."