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Steve Roberts: Bases Coated

By James Florence, Diamond Certified Resource Reporter

WALNUT CREEK —As a young man, Steve Roberts aspired to play major league baseball. Although he struck out on this initial dream, his next professional endeavor turned out to be a home run. “Out of college, I played minor league baseball for a time with the hope of making it to the majors,” he recounts. “When that didn’t work out, I wasn’t sure what was next for me, so I took a job with a local painting company. After a couple of years, I decided to start my own painting business. I later shifted to a career in investment banking, but I continued to run my painting company on the side. When I’d finally had enough of investment banking, I went back to full-time painting, and I’ve been doing that for about a decade now.”

Today, as owner of Steve Roberts Painting, Steve says his favorite part of his job is the customer interaction. “I enjoy working with homeowners to achieve their goals for their painting projects. I’ve been really lucky to have so many clients who are great to work with, so seeing the joy and appreciation on their faces when the job is complete gives me a good feeling.”

A resident of Walnut Creek (where he lives with his wife, Rosie), Steve spends his time outside of work on a variety of pastimes, including his primary avocation of baseball. “I never stopped playing baseball—in fact, I’ve played every season for the past 40 years,” he affirms. “I currently play in a men’s senior league. We go down to Arizona every year in October and have this big World Series where we play teams from around the country.” Steve also enjoys playing golf and traveling. “Rose’s brother lives in Italy, so we enjoy visiting him and experiencing different parts of Europe.”

Reflecting on his extensive career, Steve says his professional philosophy has evolved over time. “When I was young, I was motivated to make a lot of money and be successful, but my priorities have changed as I’ve grown older. Today, my main goal is to improve the lives of those around me and the people I work for. As a painting contractor, there’s only so much you can really contribute to the world, but even something as small as painting a door can have a big impact if it makes someone happy. For me, that’s what it’s all about.”

When asked about his plans for future retirement, Steve says it’s unlikely he’ll ever completely retire. “When I got out of investment banking, I didn’t really miss the work, but I did miss my interactions with clients and colleagues, so I assume I’d feel the same way if I retired from painting. I don’t have any plans to fully retire. If anything, I’ll probably keep a small crew going and just cherry-pick jobs. That would allow me to continue working with people but on a smaller scale.”

Ask Me Anything!

Q: What’s your favorite local restaurant?
A: The Original Hick’ry Pit in Walnut Creek.

Q: Are you an early bird or a night owl?
A: I’m an early bird.

Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
A: Japan. They play high-level professional baseball over there, so it would be fun to go to a game and see how they do things differently than in the United States.

Q: What’s your favorite professional baseball team?
A: The Oakland A’s, even though they released me after I played for them in the minors. I was always impressed with their training program, which I thought was a cut above the other organizations I’d played for.

Q: If you could time travel, would you go to the past or the future?
A: I’d go to the future to see what things will be like in a couple hundred years.