Stephen Harvey Nielson

Stephen Harvey Garner Nielson of Fuquay Varina, NC, died unexpectedly on Nov. 8, 2023. He was 53 years young. Born on Aug. 10, 1970, in Geneva, NY, he was the son of the late John and Elizabeth Nielson. As a child, he was a Cub Scout and earned the Arrow of Light, the highest award for Cub Scouts. His family eventually moved to Cary, NC, a town whose name is actually an acronym for “Concentrated Area of Relocated Yankees”. While Steve was unable to develop a southern accent, he did appreciate everything about North Carolina except for the UNC Tarheels. During his days at Cary High School, he served as a Governor’s Page and worked part-time at a movie theater. He was an active participant at Kirk of Kildaire Presbyterian, where he was a member of the youth group and served on the youth council. He spent two very hot summers building playgrounds as part of their service projects. During a mishap that could’ve turned fatal, he saved the life of his future wife. But that’s not the reason why she married him.

Steve attended Lees McRae College where he worked on the lighting crew for the university’s theater department. He graduated from Lees McRae and subsequently earned additional degrees from Wake Technical Community College. Steve worked for several years in the IT industry. He married his wife, Karin, on Groundhog’s Day in February 2002. Almost every year, they sent out Happy Groundhog’s Day cards to announce they were still married. When he wasn’t helping mail the cards, Steve was busy spending time with his wife and their son, Andrew. Steve was an anti-helicopter parent and, with his wife, encouraged Andrew to choose and achieve his own goals. One of Steve’s proudest moments occurred when Andrew achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. Steve was also a voracious reader; upon his passing, he owned approximately 400 books. He loved traveling. His first trip abroad was to Ireland, where he kissed the Blarney stone. He and his wife took a Panama Canal cruise for their honeymoon. They later traveled with their son to various parts of Florida and visited Gettysburg with their son’s Boy Scout troop (Steve was delighted that they stayed at a hotel instead of tents). He also loved ballroom dancing, attending Broadway shows, anything related to history, cooking, anything related to Star Wars and Star Trek, and home renovation projects (to his wife’s alternating delight and dismay). While he strongly disliked the UNC Tarheels, he always laughed when, on each April Fool’s Day, his wife and son wrote “UNC is #1” with whipped cream on his car windshield. He also never wavered in his belief that the Carolina Panthers will someday win the Super Bowl.

Steve went to heaven and was reunited with his parents. He is survived by his wife, Karin, of 21 years (according to her, they were not married long enough); son, Andrew; brother and sister-in-law, Alan and Nicole Nielson; sister-in-law, Gina Garner; nephews, Cody Salter, Dylan Nielson, Hunter Salter, and Bradyn Nielson; niece and nephew, Lisa and Tyler Beene, and their daughter Reese; aunts and uncles, cousins, and other relatives. He is also survived by his dog and cat, Samson and Delilah, whose names he picked because, well, it is humorous.

It's been said the secret of being happy is accepting where you are in life and making the most out of it every single day. That’s exactly what he did. A funeral celebration of Steve’s awesomeness will be held on December 2, 2023. A reception will start at 11:30 a.m., followed by the service at 1 p.m. In honor of Steve, please make a contribution to the Gettysburg Foundation (https://gettysburgfoundation.org) or the North Carolina Museum of History.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.BrownWynneCary.com for the Nielson family.

Link to YouTube Live Stream: https://studio.youtube.com/video/JSmSwR4ISuI/livestreaming.