Steve "Papa" Jacobson

Steven Bruce Jacobson was born September 23, 1953, in St. Paul, Minnesota, to Ray and Beverly Jacobson. He grew up as the second oldest of eight children, and after high school he joined the Navy. Within the first couple years, he was stationed in Scotland, where he met his wife, Joan Doran. He must have done something right, because only six months later, in February of 1974, they were married..

In the Navy, he deployed to Antarctica at least six times, where he supervised five people working in Central Supply. When he retired from the Navy in 1993, he continued the same job at ASA (Antarctic Support Association) and then Raytheon in Colorado, under private contract. He worked for a total of 18 years with this program. While in Antarctica he enjoyed being creative with ceramics and built pieces such as a chess set and a dolphins, and wrote letters home about what you do (or don’t do) when it’s 106 below windchill outside. He also bartended while on the Ice, and always had a smile and kind word for everyone.

Steve and Joan had five children together, and now have (almost) ten grandchildren. Steve was the Papa that the grandchildren love to snuggle with. He had an extensive movie collection, and made copies for the kids, so it was okay if they got scratched up. He enjoyed books, especially by the novelist Clive Cussler. He watched the Discovery and History Channels, built wooden model ships with his grandchildren, and taught them chess. He enjoyed playing cards - endless hours of “hand and foot” with his family, and Pinochle marathons with friends.

Steve was generous, compassionate, and kind. He is my father-in-law, he has been for 27 years. When I was a teenager, I went to their house in Navy housing in California. Joan had fallen asleep on the couch. He took a blanket and covered her. This very simple act of love and dedication has stuck with me all these years as a symbol of what marriage is. They illustrated to me with their 44 years of “richer and poorer, sickness and health, good times and bad,” what marriage was meant to be. They have shown me what family is.

Steve is remembered with love by his wife Joan; his son Steven and his wife Kirsten and their two children, Sasha and Ian; his daughter Kelley and her daughter Emme; his daughter Carol and her husband Jason and their two children, Abigail and Ethan; his son Scot and his wife Tiffany and their two sons, Liam and Noah, with another on the way; and his daughter Mellisa and her husband Alan and their two sons, Aiden and Andrew. He is also remembered by his mother Beverly, his seven siblings and much more family in Scotland and Minnesota, and friends all over.

He will be celebrated by his family and friends on Sunday, February 18th, 2018, at 11:30 a.m. at Olinger Hampden Mortuary in Denver, Colorado.