Vernon "Steve" J. Stephens

Vernon J. (Steve) Stephens died suddenly of a heart attack on July 3, 2014. He is survived by his wife Judith Reynolds; his four children Sherri Stephens-Carter (Galen), Sue Taylor (Roger), Catherine Stephens Creamer (Will), Kevin Stephens (Mary Eastman); sisters Dona Hahn and Janet Grudzinski; brother Richard Stephens (Janice); ten grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. Vern was born in Selah, Washington on July 23, 1927. He grew up in the oil fields of Midwest Wyoming and served in the United States Navy at the end of WWII. He met Iris Yearous in Midwest and after a courtship involving a lot of dancing, married her in Fort Morgan, CO on June 22, 1947. Vern attended the University of Wyoming and graduated in 1951 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. From Wyoming the family moved to Bremerton, WA and then to Los Alamos, NM where the children all grew up and Vern worked for Los Alamos National Laboratory and Los Alamos Technical Associates. In 1990, Vern and Iris relocated to Albuquerque where Iris predeceased him in 1991. Vern was fortunate to have then met Judith Reynolds and they were married on November 28, 2004. Vern loved having his entire family around him and was very proud of them for their accomplishments. When his children were young he enjoyed building things with and for them, coaching baseball and softball and stumping them with puns. He loved photography; chronicling family events and his many travels. He liked to work on clocks and watches, he could fix or repair almost anything and he loved khaki pants, white shirts, panama hats and fedoras. He enjoyed working crossword puzzles and playing solitaire. He traveled the world and was proud to have been on every continent and to have visited 49 of the 50 states. His family will miss his unique sense of humor, his joy in all of them and his annual leveling of the Christmas tree. The family will be receiving relatives and friends, Tuesday, July 8, 2014 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Chapel of Daniels Family Funeral Services - Alameda Mortuary, 9420 Fourth Street NW, where the Funeral Services will be conducted at 4:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers the family requests contributions be made to the Barrett House: ,10300 Constitution Ave NE, Albuquerque, NM 87112 (505) 243-4887. Steve's care is entrusted to: Daniels Family Funeral Services ALAMEDA MORTUARY 9420 Fourth Street NW Albuquerque, NM 87114 (505) 898-3160