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In Memory

Steve Carl Bokor - Class Of 1971 VIEW PROFILE

Steve Carl Bokor

Steve Carl Bokor

Jun. 29,1953 - Feb. 9, 2005

 

SOUTH BEND -- Steve "Uncle Bobby Rivers" Bokor, 51, of Lafayette, Ind., formerly of South Bend and Mishawaka, died Wednesday in his home of natural causes.

Survivors include three daughters, Natasha Bokor and Tracy Alberts, both of South Bend, and Dana Champagne of Atlanta; a son, Travis Feldman of South Bend; and a sister, Maria Longsworth of Ohio.

Memorial services will be at 10 a.m. Monday in St. Joseph Church, Mishawaka. There will be no visitation. Hippensteel Funeral Home, Lafayette, is handling arrangements.

Published in the South Bend Tribune on February 11, 2005.

 

04/27/2021 DEC

 

Longtime radio DJ 'Uncle' Bobby Rivers dies at 51

 

Bobby Rivers, whose uncompromising opinions and deep, lyrical voice were hallmarks of a distinguished radio career, died early Wednesday morning in his Lafayette, Ind., apartment. He was 51.

A friend called police when Mr. Rivers did not respond to repeated knocks at his door about 9:30 a.m. While an official cause of death hasn't been released, initial reports suggest Mr. Rivers died of natural causes. He'd been battling non-Hodgkin's lymphoma since June 2004 but had been cancer-free since October, his daughter said.

Mr. Rivers, whose real name was Steve Bokor, was best known to Michiana listeners as "Uncle Bobby Rivers."

He had most recently been working as a DJ for WASK-FM in Lafayette but was widely known for on-air stints at WNDU-FM (U93) and WRBR-FM (formerly WZZP) in the 1980s and early '90s.

"I grew up in South Bend. I spent a lot of time listening to Bobby Rivers," said Mark Allen, WASK operations manager. "He's the type of guy you listen to just to see what he'd do next."

After working at stations in Fort Wayne, Indianapolis and Tucson, Ariz., Mr. Rivers returned to South Bend in 1981, where he was hired by WNDU-FM.

Joel Dearing, program director at WYYD in Roanoke, Va., was U93's afternoon drive-time DJ at the time.

"He had that irreverent bad-boy image on the air, even though he wasn't," said Dearing, known by his initials J.K. on the air. "He had fun and thought everyone else should have fun, too."

Mr. Rivers got his nickname at U93 after saying hello on air to visiting nieces and nephews. "Uncle Bobby" stuck throughout his career.

Mr. Rivers left U93 in 1987 to take over the morning show at then WZZP (103.9), which later became WRBR.

Since leaving South Bend in 1995, Rivers worked at WZOW-FM in Goshen and WCOE in LaPorte.

Mr. Rivers was born June 29, 1953, in Mishawaka to Steve and Anna Toth Bokor. He graduated from Adams High School in 1971 and attended Manchester College.

Mr. Rivers is survived by his adult daughter, Natasha Bokor, and a grandchild, Nevaeh Foster, of South Bend.

He's also survived by former wife Patricia Risner, of South Bend, and former stepchildren, Dana Champagne, of Atlanta, and Travis Feldman and Tracy Alberts, both of South Bend.

A memorial service will be at 10 a.m. Monday in St. Joseph Church, 225 S. Mill St., Mishawaka. In lieu of flowers, the Bobby Rivers Memorial Fund has been established through Teachers Credit Union.

Published in the South Bend Tribune on February 11, 2005.

 

06/05/2023 DEC

 

 

South Bend Tribune



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