Stacy Deayne Steiger

“The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long.” And the light of many lives was extinguished on January 4th when Stacy Deayne Steiger, 32, a resident of Maitland, Florida passed away from a seizure secondary to vasculitis. Stacy was born on September 1, 1983 in Gainesville to Peggy D’Armand and William Vealey. Stacy grew up in Florida, but spent her high school years in Arkansas where she graduated from Mountain Home High School in 2001. Throughout her years, Stacy gravitated towards children, and often maintained a close friendship with small children instead of her peers. She always believed that the best friends you could have are your family, and worked tirelessly to ensure a close relationship with the individuals in her family unit. Stacy secured a special bond with each of her siblings: Stephanie (Nae), Michael (Mikey), and Laura (Yaya), often confusing her role as a sister to one of a mother. Throughout the years, she coined phrases such as "Whatever, dude!" and "Only you, Yaya!", always spending her time with a smile on her face. There was never a dogpile too big for her to leap onto or a problem too insignificant to lend an ear. She lived her life fearlessly, and will be remembered as the heroin of so many lives. Admiring her sister's decision to serve her country, Stacy served briefly in the United States Air Force with the goal of going into Intelligence before being medically discharged due to a congenital heart defect. She underwent surgery in 2004 to correct the defect and subsequent follow ups with her cardiologist have been clean. After almost 5 years of dating, she married Eddie in November of 2007 at Ascension Lutheran Church where they were both members. They moved into their first house together and in 2009, and Stacy began taking classes to pursue her nursing degree. Just prior to beginning the clinical portion of school, Stacy fulfilled her lifelong wish of becoming a mother with the birth of her first son Jakob in June of 2010. Unfortunately, not all was perfect as Stacy suffered a major stroke in August 2010 that left her hospitalized for a week and with residual right sided deficits. After a rigorous physical and occupational therapy regime, Stacy returned to classes and in December 2011, she graduated from Keiser University. She passed her NCLEX licensure exam in early 2012 and received her RN credentials from the state of Florida shortly thereafter. Stacy worked as an Oncology nurse at Mid Florida Hematology and Oncology and began working on her Bachelor’s Degree. Her ultimate goal was to become a pediatric nurse practitioner but her career and her education was put on hold a second time with the birth of Mathew in July 2014. Stacy returned to work and began taking care of very sick children as a pediatric home health nurse with PSA Healthcare. Stacy has always said she was put on this Earth to be a mother and for the time being, she felt her little family was complete. They moved into a new place in Maitland and experienced the joy of Mathew’s first words and first steps and celebrated their first Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas together. Family brought Stacy joy and happiness and peace, and we’re so grateful she was able to experience the wonderful holiday season with her boys and her husband. She is survived by her husband, Eddie and her children Jakob (5) and Mathew (17 months), her mother and father Peggy and Greg D'Armand, and father Bill Vealey, and her siblings: Stephanie, Michael, and Laura. A funeral service will be held for Stacy at Ascension Lutheran Church (351 Ascension Drive, Casselberry, FL) on Friday, January 8. The service will begin at 11:30 a.m. in the sanctuary. Visitation will precede the service in the sanctuary from 10:00 a.m. until the start of the service. A luncheon will follow the service in the church fellowship hall. Contributions will be accepted for the Steiger family. Checks may be made out to Ascension Lutheran Church with “Steiger family fund” written in the memo line. If you choose to donate online at www.ascensionlcms.org, please be sure to type “Steiger family fund” where it asks, “Add special instructions to receipt”. Stacy brought so much joy to so many lives and her work wouldn’t have been possible without the tireless effort of so many of individuals. We would like to thank the doctors and nurses that devoted countless hours to treating Stacy and overseeing her health and wellbeing. Specifically, we would like to thank Dr. Arwa Saidi of Shands Gainesville, Dr. Arnaldo Isa of Neurology Associates, and Dr. Anthony Cabreira of Physicians Associates. Additionally, we would like to offer a special thank you to Mr. Dan Marcone for devoting so much time and energy towards helping Stacy deal with the psychological scars that resulted from a long life of fighting against the odds. Death leaves a heartache no one can heal but love leaves a memory no one can steal.

Stacy Deayne Steiger

September 1, 1983 - January 4, 2016