I met Steve at Hamline University in the late 70s. He was a dynamic teacher. He inspired me to study biblical and inter-testamental literatures and biblical archaeology. I helped him at the Festival of Nations and even re-roofed his house in St. Paul.
I am deeply sadden at his passing. I will miss exchanging holiday greetings with him. 
May his memory always be a blessing to his family and friends!

I knew Steven only through faculty meetings at Ringling College, but he seemed to care deeply about his teaching. I am so sorry for your loss.

Steven brought joy and knowledge  to us at Ringling College through his subtle humor and rich experience of the world. We will miss him greatly.   He was a pleasure to work with and always lifted our spirits.

I am so sorry to hear about the passing of Steven. At Ringling College, we had the same classroom, and we joked and commiserated about the room's shortcomings. He had a great sense of humor and knew not to take  everything so seriously. I appreciated that about him.  I am sorry for your loss. 

While I did not know Dr. Derfler well, as he was a new colleague, I am certain that the students at Ringling College of Art and Design would have benefitted greatly from his courses. Please accept my deepest sympathy.

I just learned of Steve's death through the Hamline University President's Office. Steve and I were colleagues at Hamline many years ago. There was one office between our basement haunts in the Giddens Learning Center. Our close proximity led to many conversations --in either office or the hall between them-- about teaching, students, philosophy, religion and the anti-war movement. Thinking back on our time together brings many fond memories to mind.  Steve's ready smile, quick wit and cheerful spirit are already missed. May family and friends find strength in one another, and in memories of time with Steve. --Duane Cady


As a colleague of Steve's at Hamline University I remember him affectionately.  Conversations with him were always fun and filled with his learning and excitement.  I have indeed missed his presence at the University.  My best to Draga with whom I had a great family dinner.


My first trip to Israel was  with a group of University of  Minnesota students in 1975.  We worked at Tel Sheva and  Steve, along with Profs. Rainey and Aharoni led the dig.  Many good memories.

Condolences to his family and may his memory be for a blessing.



Steve was one of the best and most knowledgeable speakers the Beth Israel Men's Club ever had.  He brought his PowerPoint presentations to us every year and never failed to fill our social hall.  He will be sorely missed!  Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family.  Jeff Beller, President.

Steven was one of my favorite instructors at OLLI.
 I will miss his wry sense of humor and the laughs we shared.  He called me "Little S" and  I called him "Big  S." 
He was a dedicated instructor with a passion for teaching and giving his time and talents. 
He was one of the best.
My deep condolences to the family.  

We were so shocked and saddened to hear about the passing of Steve. We really enjoyed listening to his lectures and were so impressed with his vast knowledge.  
We were glad that we got to know him.  He will be missed by so many.  Our sincere sympathy to his family

Ida and Jeff 

I am so sad to hear of Steve’s passing.  I remembered all of you from your time at Mt. Zion a million years ago.  I believe Jessi and my daughter Hannah are the same age.  My parents, Joan and Watson Fearing, traveled with Steve on several trips including Morocco and Egypt.  My sister Julia also went with him to Egypt.  My husband Charles and i went with Steve, and Draga, to Cuba.  We have travelled extensively but this is one of our favorite trips ever.  Steve was such a special person and will be sorely missed.  May his memory be for a blessing.

Terri Stander

Dear Draga and Jessi-
I was shocked and so terribly saddened to just learn of your loss.
My late husband Mel originally connected to Steve through his childhood classmate Rhonda from Naples: Mel asked her if she knew of any good speakers for a Hadassah men’s event and she said her friend Steven Derfler was a great lecturer, had just finished his first novel and might be in Florida in a few months looking around.
The eventual program at the Shriners turned out to be a huge success as, of course, Steve was a fantastic and charismatic speaker.  More importantly, he liked the Sarasota area and that turned out to be such a positive addition to our community bringing us your family!
He will be missed by so many whose lives he enriched and I wish you the comfort of that and your many precious memories.
With deepest sympathy and prayers,
Sandi Kligman

I knew Steve from the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism and Time Sifters. He had a wonderful personality. I'm so sorry for your loss. His charisma will live on. My sincere condolences, Edie Kaplan

My husband and I took a class from Dr. Derfler this past February 2020. He was brilliant, insightful and very knowledgeable about other cultures. His lectures were fascinating and transporting. We are truly going to miss him. What a loss for us and this community. Our hearts and prayers will be  consolation for his family and for strength to cope with this loss. God be with this family and all of us to deal with this significant loss. 
With deep heartfelt sorrow,
Lynette L Velez Salheiser and Dr. Hans R. Salheiser

With the Ace extension program, I took one course on the Dead Sea Scrolls with Dr Derfler.  He touched me on a deep level with his knowledge, faith, and kindness - I could not write at the time - as my right hand was in a brace.  He sent me all his notes at home.  A remarkable human.  

Thanks for sharing him.

I didn't know Steve well but he was a colleague of my late husband,  David, and my son, Seth, studied with him as an undergrad.  Both spoke highly of him.  My husband consulted with him when David started the Hamline Hebrew University Program of Law, Religion and Ethics in the law school.  I am so sorry for your loss.




Steve introduced himself to me about 20 years ago and we became friends instantly.  He was a great friend and a wonderful man.  I often wondered if he knew more about Christianity than I did and as a Catholic Deacon we had many many discussions.  I enjoyed them a lot.  I also enjoyed the times we would go to lunch at the Deli in St, Paul MN.  Our condolences to the family and our prayers for him and his family!

Jessi
My condolences to you and the family on the passing of Steven. A few years ago I arranged to have Steve speak at Temple Emanu-El regarding Cuba and the Jewish population there. His talk was absolutely wonderful. On that occasion we had the largest attendance for a Sunday morning breakfast event.  It was such a pleasure listening to him, a very knowledgeable and superb educator and a great guy.  He will be missed by many.
Don Malawsky
    

Early on Steven Derfler was an excellent teacher in MN. 
I was looking for my roots  in Israel, traveling alone and my mother surprised me by signing me up to work on Steven's project in the storage units of Tel BeerSheva  circa 1975 .

 At 17, feeling young and dumb, I remember him so kindly explaining to me,
 I could shovel dirt for the highly esteemed professors and archaeologists he had gathered there! 
I learned so much under his watchful eye and from his dedication and resourcefulness to every new shard we found.  
 
I am truly saddened our community has lost this great historian, archaeologist and the wonderful human being that was
 Steven Derfler.

Steve was an asset to the History Department and an excellent colleague.  His presence in the world will be missed.
Kurt

I am so saddened to hear of the loss of Steve.  He was my classmate at Bexley School (class of '69) and we had always talked about getting together sometime as I live in Ft. Myers.  Saw him at our 50th Reunion.  Covid 19 has been  such a tragedy to so many.  My mother had it when she passed a few months ago.
May God give you all Peace as you deal with the loss.

Blessings,
Mindy Klie Rutherford


I am indebted to Steven for his generosity in providing me with a praise quote for my novel, The Mithras Conspiracy and for his superb and witty archaeology lectures I had the pleasure of attending.

My husband Ira andI were so very sad to just hear of Steve’s passing.  We were elementary and High School classmates in Columbus.  We always reconnected at our reunions, but especially after our 50th reunion.  We spoke monthly after we returned home and had plans on getting together to play golf.  It was so wonderful to hear and read about all of his accomplishments!!!  We will miss all of the fun times we shared.  May his memory always be a blessing.  Our condolences to his family and everyone he touched.
Renee and Ira Groban, Rockville,MD

I took many of Steve's courses at OLLI. I was always impressed with his vast knowledge,  ability to explain difficult concepts, and his engaging sense of humor. He will be greatly missed by the so many people who learned from him. May his memory and example be a blessing for you! 

Steven was a wonderful teacher, so full of knowledge with an interesting and humorous way of getting the message across. He was also generous with his information and willing to share his presentations. I participated in many of his classes through OLLI and the federation. He will be missed. I share in your sorrow.

My deepest heartfelt sympathy to Steve's family. We were colleagues at UW River Falls. I could always count on Steve to lift my spirits every time we met. Loved our conversations, which always went too long!! He was also a great comfort to me when we lost our mutual friend Dr Tracey Gladstone. He will be fondly remembered.

My sympathy goes out to Steve's family.  I was a colleague of Steve's at UWRF and would occasionally commute with him from Minneapolis.   He was always fun to be with, good stories, a big laugh.  Steve had much integrity and was a skilled and serious teacher touching many lives.

This is a big loss for our lifelong learning community. It was evident how much Steve enjoyed sharing his knowledge with his students.  He was sure to bring a smile to everyone's face and was such a joy to work with. We will miss Steve here at ACE. My thoughts are with his family during this difficult time.  

Dear Draga and Jessi,

I am sad to learn of the death of Steven. I keep my wonderful memories with you and your family. I am so grateful to have known Steven, you and Jessi and had spend time with your family. I extend my deepest condolences to you and all your family and friends. You are in my thoughts and prayers. 
Steven, May you Rest In Peace !
With Love, Mélanie

Dear Draga and Jessi,
I am so very sad to hear of Steve’s passing. It’s hard to believe of someone who was so full of life! Though it has been too many years since our days at the St. Paul JCC, I will always remember Steve’s big smile and incredible teaching. We always spoke of going on one of his trips to Morocco and Egypt. I’m sending sincere condolences to you - may Steve’s memory be only for a blessing.
Dori Denelle

So sorry to hear this news. I worked with Steve at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. He also had a smile on his face, and was very appreciative of the work I did for him when he needed some audio visual equipment. He will be missed. Two nice Jewish guys working at a Catholic University. May his memory be for a blessing.

Dear Draga and Jessie, 
Steve was such an incredible man, funny with a dry and clever sense of humor.
May the wonderful memories of Steve sustain you and your family
always.
We are grateful to have known him.  Love, Gail and Bob Cooper

Steve's lectures and all day seminars at OLLI were some of the highlights after my late husband and I moved to Sarasota. Steve had a brilliant mind and was able to share his detailed knowledge in archeology, history and geography with his students. He raised the level of our curiosity and we were always looking forward to the next semester's catalogue. Yes, his trip to Egypt was fabulous and I was looking forward to a guided tour with Dr. Derfler to Israel in the near future. It was not meant to be.
I would like to express my sincere sympathy to his family and hope that their fond memories of him, will make it easier to overcome  this tremendous loss.
Gisela Weinland

Such sad news...Steven Derfler was a scholar and a gentleman. He made learning such fun for his retired adult students by sharing his great enthusiasm for teaching; his passion for knowledge; and flashing his great BIG smile with his marvelous sense of humor!!!
Rest in Peace.  My deepest condolences to his family. 

Dear Family members of Steve, 
I'm very sorry for your loss, my deepest condolences to you.  I joined UWRF in 2004 and Steve was a very fine and highly respected colleague.  Wishing you folks warmest memories of him.  
Sincerely,
Peter Mak. 

A wonderful teacher and a lovely man. We will miss taking his classes. 

Although I did not know him, as an ACE instructor, I pray for God to have Steven rest in peace.  My sympathy to his family and all who had contact with him.  

Dear Family and Friends of Dr. Derfler:
Blessings of our Creator flow out to comfort everyone who knows him and to ease the transition of our brother Steve. We are thankful for all blessings.

The people that make up Masada3D  Project Team were honored and privileged to know this very learned, very nice and unassuming scholar. 

Our project will continue to list Steve as a trusted advisor and participant. Much of what we are doing now benefited from his guidance based upon his practical field observation.

https://masada3d.com/

For the Masada3D Team,
Kent Morrison
kent@steamboat3d.com

the image is a recent render of our 3D reconstruction of Masada

Dear Steve
Steve was  an easy going guy, fun to be around. He always had an off the cuff comment and you'd look at him and just smile. He was a very good golfer but never kept score. Never interested in what the final tally was ,just wanted to get a great shot to the flag.  He would always say to me "OK Paulie catch a good one." Of course for me that was very occasional. Steve will be missed both on the golf course with our other partner Wayne and myself and  also always happy to help him with little and big projects that Draga would ask him to do. Steve was a super guy and will be missed. Wayne and I will have to bury a yellow golf ball at the course in his honor.
Paul Scheraldi

I am so sorry to hear of Steven's passing.  I have attended many of his lectures.  I travelled with him in the classroom as I knew I would not be able to physically travel to these many places.  I am an ACE Instructor and Steven taught 3 classes to my Classroom On Wheels Students.  He was a joy to know and I loved his humor.  Steven may your rest in peace in the arms of our God.
I did not know that Steven was from Columbus, Ohio.  I, too, am a Buckeye from Columbus, Ohio.  My girlfriend, Sandy Murphy, also an Buckeye,  often came with me to Steven's lectures.  I speak for her and myself as we both enjoyed his lectures and his wealth of knowledge about history, cultures, religions, and geography.  Steven rest in peace.

What a SHOCK to hear the news of Steve's passing.  I could hardly believe it.  I took so many of his classes at Lifelong Learning, and although the jokes were not so good, his teaching and knowledge were brilliant!  Each class was so interesting and unique and his knowledge seemed limitless to me.  He will be missed by so many of us, but I will never forget all I have learned with Steve.  I am blessed to have known him.

Steve was a beloved  instructor in the North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale, MN Community Education program for many years. In addition, many class participants also traveled with him on various tours. We grieved when he moved to Florida and then were excited to have him back teaching virtually, and now we grieve again. Wishing God's peace to his family and friends.

It is with great sadness that I learned Tuesday morning of the passing of my good friend, neighbor,  and golf buddy.  I  have known Steve many years and we tried to play golf with Paulie, another friend and neighbor,  at least once a week. Steve had a wonderful golf swing for a novice golfer. Steve would never get upset over a bad shot. He would just say I'll do better on my next shot.  We could always count on Steve telling us at least 5 bad jokes on a round of golf.  Paulie and myself will truly miss him!  Our golf memories will truly last a lifetime. My wife, Carolyn, and I want to extend our deepest sympathy and condolences to Draga, Jesse,and Zeva. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

Steven was a wonderful teacher. I especially enjoyed his class on the Dead Sea Scrolls. He provided many interesting slides and numerous personal anecdotes that made the class very memorable.  Every time I cast my eyes on my book of the Dead Sea Scrolls, I'll remember Steven. Peace.

I was a class mate of Steve's at Bexley HS. Please accept my condolences on his passing..

Dear Draga and Jessi,
I just heard that Steve has Passed. I am so very, very sorry!
 I offer my heartfelt condolences for your loss. He had an amazing life and contributed much to this world and your Family. You made  so many happy memories together....
 You are in my thoughts and in my Prayers
Love Kathy

I have worked with Steve at Adult Enrichment (ACE) for many years.  He was a brilliant instructor and his classes were some of our favorites.   Talking to Steve and hearing his bad jokes were always a welcome part of my day.  He will be missed more than I can say by our students and staff.   Our thoughts are with the entire Derfler family.

Steve generously shared his knowledge with our students at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.  His smile and his love of teaching made him a favorite faculty member among our students.


I was devastated to learn of Steve's passing.  We grew up together on North Stanwood.  We played in each other's back yard.  He was my senior prom date.  Even though we only saw each other at class reunions we had a connection.  We were part of each other's lives for our early years.  He was a brilliant man.  I was so proud of all he achieved.  Please accept my sympathies.  May his memory be a blessing.


I knew Steve through his passion for archaeology, serving with him on the board of Time Sifters. I heard wonderful stories about the trips he led to Israel, Egypt, and Morocco and I was hoping to join his next trip to Greece. His enthusiasm was infectious and his bad jokes made me roll my eyes and laugh at the same time. 

My condolences to his family. May his memory be a blessing.

I could echo all the other thoughts,  but I owe  Steve for helping me achieve one of my top dreams, to go to Egypt and see the Pyramids .  I'll never be  able to say thank him  enough.  I did love the trip to Morocco,   as well as the many classes I attended, traveling the world in the classroom.
My heartfelt sympathy to the family. 
Millie Finkel


Dr Derfler was an interesting and passionate educator. I worked in IT at UW River Falls and enjoyed supporting his classes with technology. We had many conversations about people and his travels. I still have a little mat that was hand made in Egypt that he brought back for me. I use it as a cloth for my coffee cup on my desk. Blessings to the family.

Steve and I met about 20 years ago.    Since we live in Cleveland, much of our connection was by phone or email.    He became Steverino and I became Martini.   We talked weekly .   
We shared a passion for Ohio State Football, resulting in weekly calls.   With baseball,  he had his Twinkies.    
I remember the joy he expressed about moving to Florida so that he and Draga could be close to Jessica and her family.   
My deepest sympathies at your tragic loss.

I just received the sad news from Haytham, in Egypt.  I will always be grateful for the opportunity that Steve gave me to travel to Egypt.  He was a phenomenal teacher who loved to share his knowledge.  I will so miss him... "Yello?"
He loved his family dearly - you are in my heart, thoughts and prayers as you get through these dark days.

It was my good fortune to take many of Steve's classes and join many of his trips abroad over the years. He was so generous with his time and his knowledge and his enthusiasm. He was the link to many valued friendships and our fond memories will endure. My thanks to his family for sharing him with all of us.


Steve was my room mate at AEPi in Bloomington, IN. After he was hit by a car while playing frisbee, I held his leg together until the ambulance arrived. 
We continued as roommates and friends. He was in our wedding. 
We've stayed in touch thru the years. 
Charlene and I are devastated. 
Our deepest sympathy to his family. 
May his name and smile always be fit a memory. 

I first met Steve as an instructor a the Lifelong Learning Academy  of Sarasota-Bradenton. And then I traveled with him  twice, to Israel and to Morocco. On top of that there were many local classes including his series of Armchair Travel that included lunch with  foods of the "visited" country. We had lots of talk, lots of laughter, and lots of fun.  I will miss him greatly.

Dear Draga and Family, we are so sorry for your loss. Hold your memories and love close to your heart. I know Steve will be missed by his family and community.

Dear Draga and Jessi, 
 I heard that Steve was sick and am so sorry to see this news.  Please know that my heart is with you.  May Steve’s memory be a blessing to you.
Jamie

OBITUARY

Steven Lee Derfler

December 22, 1951 – January 26, 2021

Robert Toale & Sons Funeral Home at Palms Memorial Park

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