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Photo of Stephen D. Schaper

Stephen D. Schaper

7/24/1961 - 9/19/2016


Obituary


Stephen Schaper, 55, of Rochester, formerly of Britt, passed away Monday, September 19, 2016.

Funeral services for Stephen Schaper will be held on Saturday, September 24, 2016, at 1:30 PM at the United Methodist Church, 707 4th Street Southwest in Britt with Pastor Larry Vallery and Pastor Walden Paige officiating. Burial will follow at Evergreen Cemetery in Britt.

Visitation for Stephen Schaper will be held from 5:00 – 7:00 PM on Friday, September 23, 2016, at Ewing Funeral Chapel, 178 Center Street West in Britt and will continue one hour prior to services at the church on Saturday.

Stephen Darrell Schaper was born July 24, 1961 in the Hancock County Memorial Hospital, Britt, Iowa. He was baptized in infancy in the Britt Methodist Church and confirmed at age twelve in the Britt Methodist Church. At the time of his death at age 55, on September 19, 2016, he was active in Grace Lutheran Church in Rochester, MN.

After graduating from Britt High School, he earned a Bachelor’s Degree at Central College, Pella, Iowa. He then earned a Master of Divinity Degree at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. He also earned a Master’s Certificate in Christian Education at Concordia University, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Steve had many interests and delighted in sharing his love of learning with others, especially with children. He worked for several years as a substitute teacher and tutor. Astronomy was one of his major interests for many years. Most recently, he channeled his interest in science and technology in the technology industry. He also was an avid photographer.

Steve loved the outdoors, and his favorite memories included family vacations hiking in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, and in planting trees with his father and Grandfather Schaper. He enjoyed playing and usually winning, word and trivia games. An able musician, he played the cornet, the guitar and walkabout dulcimer. He was an avid reader.

Although Steve had been living in Rochester, Minnesota, his heart was always in rural Iowa and he died unexpectedly but peacefully, of natural causes on September 19, 2016 while visiting his parents on their farm near Britt. He is survived by his parents, Darrell Clifford Schaper and Judith Ann Freiberg Schaper, and his sister Susan Elizabeth Schaper of Caldwell, Idaho. His uncle, Earl Albert Huffman of Evergreen, Colorado survived Steve by one day. He was also survived by his aunt and uncle, Martha Schaper Hand and Randall Hand of Shepherd, Montana, his cousins Kimberly Huffman Sell, Lakewood, Colorado, Katherine Huffman McCarthy of Keenesberg, Colorado, and John McGurk of Shepherd, Montana.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, and his aunt Sharron Schaper Huffman.

Any memorial gifts may be directed to the charity or organization of the donor’s preference, or to the West Hancock Volunteer Ambulance Service, Britt, Iowa.