Steve Richard Hense

Steve was born to Richard and Darlene (Cech) Hense in Lincoln, Nebraska.

His sister Cindy, was born on the same day two years earlier.

He attended Pershing School in Lincoln until the third grade and then attended Meadowlane School.

There was a neighborhood pool right across the street and Steve and Cindy watched it longingly.

The next year, their Hense grandparents bought them a membership. Steve said he spent all day at the pool and all evening playing ball at Little Chiefs!

The family moved to Waverly the year Steve started 7th grade. He finished his education at Waverly and loved exploring creeks and hiking in the area. He played sports but sports weren’t really his thing. He preferred outdoor adventures. He graduated in 1974.

Steve joined the Marine Corps on October 19, 1974. He had wanted to become a policeman so he went to Military Occupational Specialties School at Fort Gordon in Augusta, Georgia to become a Corrections Officer. He graduated second in his class. The Marine who was first in class automatically went to Quantico and the one who graduated second got his choice of where to go. Steve chose Barstow, California.

Each week he would go to Las Vegas, Nevada to pick up prisoners. He served one and a half years at Barstow until they closed the brig.

Steve then transferred to Camp Pendleton near Los Angeles. He served as Section Leader where he was in charge of three officers and fifty to sixty prisoners. He served there until he mustered out of the Marine Corps.

While still in the Marine Corps in California, Steve noticed the first symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis but was not diagnosed until later. He had gone to school to be an architect but was forced to quit just before graduating because his vision was so bad.

In spite of his disability, Steve lived a full life. He took river trips on the Middle Fork River, Salmon River, Northern Ontario, went to the Yukon and Alaska and Allegash. He also went skiing four times a year in Breckenridge. He made a tandem parachute jump in 1986. He saw Mount St. Helens in 1988 and marveled at the sight the volcano eruption had left.

One of his biggest adventures was marrying Nelia Miller on October 19, 1991. He also gained a daughter, Janet, son-in-law, Ken Jarvis, a son, Garen and daughter-in-law Victoria. Later he gained a granddaughter, Ellen Jarvis, and grandsons, Keegan and Zade Miller. As life moved on, Ellen and Nathaniel Logman had a son, Braelyn, and Garen and Victoria adopted their son, Timos. So Steve’s quiver was full of happiness and joy.

Steve have many talents. He was an excellent sharpshooter in the Corps. He was also a talented photographer until his vision got too bad to continue. He was good at managing money in the stock market. He loved people and visiting with them. One of his favorite pastimes was sitting on the front porch and talking with everyone who stopped by.

Steve loved the Lord and he would share his faith with anyone who showed interest in spiritual things even though he was basically a shy man. He enjoyed serving as treasurer at Grace Community Church under Pastor Stan Schrag for many years. He longed for the day when he would be free from his disability and present with the Lord but he enjoyed this life. He loved his wife, his home, his children and grandchildren, his nephews and nieces, and his friends.

He is survived by his wife Nelia, daughter Janet, son Garen, daughter-in-love, Victoria Miller, granddaughter and grandson, Ellen and Nathaniel Longman and great-grandson, Braelyn, grandsons Keegan, Zade and Timos Miller, dear sister and brother-in-love, Cindy and Mark Hacker, sister-in-love, Judy Wenquist and dear friend, John Johnson, nephew, Jenifer and Andy Holmquist and daughters, Chloe and Charlotte, aunt, Dolly Warren and cousins. He had many dear friends who have been so important to him and he loved all of you and was so grateful to have you in his life.

Steve was a quiet, shy and gentle man but he had such a huge impact on the lives of those who knew him. His passing leaves a huge void in our lives but we are grateful that God allowed us to be part of his life. As his nurse said as we left Homestead the morning of his passing, “You are so lucky you got to be in his life for as long as you did. We only knew him a short time but we loved him. He was a special man”

Celebration of Life is Sunday, October 28, 2018 at Wilderness Ridge from 2 to 4 pm.

Memorials to the family to be donated to the Pat Taylor Cancer Fund.