In Remembrance

Stephen entered the world March 9, 1952, in Abington, PA, along with his younger (by five minutes!) sister Kathryn (Kath). The family, including parents Jean (Wilson/Cheney) and Eion Dando, and older siblings Jim and Patti, moved to Ladera, south of San Francisco, when Stephen was two. He spent some formative months in Minnesota with both sets of grandparents when five years old. Back in California, he spent his early years exploring nature: walking through the redwoods, searching for arrowheads and fossils in the cliffs behind the house, and investigating tide pools. Stephen fondly remembered his first and second grade teacher from the Hopi tribe – from whom he learned to appreciate indigenous cultures and different ways of interpreting history and was proud to have learned to use a slide rule in third grade. He frequently told stories about impromptu dances to Jimi Hendrix, Janice Joplin, and Jerry Garcia and sneaking into shows at the Avalon in his teen years. Growing up, Stephen was a competitive swimmer, unfortunately at the same time as Olympian Mark Spitz, who Stephen used to joke was out of the pool and drying off by the time he finished. In Young Life, a Christian focused club for high schoolers, he found unconditional love and acceptance which deeply influenced his future.

Stephen’s parents moved to Minnesota when he was a junior in high school where he lived for most of his life, even though he always considered himself “from California”. He and his twin sister, Kath, settled on the University of Minnesota, Duluth, for their first year, with the hope of returning to California ASAP, but they never left.

Stephen’s commitment to community and civic engagement were evident from his early years. He was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam conflict. He helped form and was President of Students for Christian Confrontation, a campus ministry fighting for peace and justice. He and a friend initiated the first Walk for Development in Duluth. After college, he moved to the Twin Cities where he worked as a family and young adult therapist at various locations.

Stephen met Lori at a mutual friend’s wedding in October 1979. At the time, Stephen ran a sailing school and raced sailboats while working at a yacht club on Lake Minnetonka. Stephen and Lori took a trip together to deliver a sailboat to the East coast and he bought a scrimshaw ring and told her he was going to marry her. They got married less than a year later (Sept 1, 1980) in St. Paul, MN and went sailing on Lake Superior for their honeymoon. Lori finished law school and Stephen finished a seminary degree the following year. Stephen took a year in 1983-84 to go to Bangor seminary in Maine, while Lori stayed in St. Paul. Later, Stephen would teach bible study and serve as both a hospital chaplain and a Presbyterian elder.

In 1994, Lori joined the U.S. State Department Foreign Service, and the family began overseas adventures. Lori was assigned to eight different countries, but together Stephen and Lori travelled to well over 85 countries. Stephen enjoyed working at various Embassies, engaging in soft diplomacy in support of the United States, playing tennis, gardening, cooking, scuba-diving, swimming, biking, playing cards and other games, training for (but never entering) a triathlon, and drinking scotch whiskey.

Stephen and Lori raised two fine young men, Elliot (dob 8/5/85) and Eion (dob 10/19/87). Stephen’s love for his family was unwavering and he treasured his role as husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, uncle, and friend.

Rest in Peace, Stephen

Stephen’s celebration of life service will be held at 1:30 p.m. March 16, 2025, at Peace Church (1111 N 11th Ave East; Duluth, MN 55805). In lieu of flowers the family would appreciate donations to the Social Justice fund through Peace Church or a social justice charitable organization of your choice.