17 Oct Obit: Rev. Dave Stephens

Rev. Dave Stephens passed away Thursday night, October 16, 2014. He was an ordained United Brethren minister, former UB pastor, and for 25 years, director of Camp Cotubic in Bellefontaine, Ohio.

Dave’s son, Scott, wrote the following on Facebook:

With his family at his side, dad passed away on October 16th at 8:00 pm. He’d battled cancer for a year and fought the good fight right up to the end. Dad was such a great man and had a way of making everyone he came in contact with feel like they were family. He was truly a man with the heart of Christ….

God blessed him with a great stage in Camp Cotubic to simply love on people, and that’s what he did every day. He loved the camp so much and gave his heart and soul to it every day for 25 years. God gave Dad a vision 25 years ago, and he worked hard to see that vision come to pass. A couple years ago, Dad sat down and tried to figure out the number of kids that have come through the camp. He quit counting once the number of kids reached a number that would fill Ohio Stadium.

Dad has left us with a great example we all should follow in how to treat others. He always left people better than he’d find them. As I sit here I can’t help but imagine what Dad is seeing right now. He understood this earth isn’t home and looked forward to seeing his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and he also looked forward to seeing his earthly father who passed away in 1984.

We, the Stephens family want to thank everyone who has shown us so much love. It has truly been overwhelming to see the number of people Dad has touched come and love on us over the last year of his battle with cancer. We love you all so much and couldn’t have made it through this without you. Know we’re doing fine and are celebrating as we know where Dad is and who he’s with now! No more pain, no more tears, and no more cancer.

Funeral details will be posted when available. Tentatively, the viewing will be held Monday, October 20, with the funeral on Tuesday in Bellefontaine, Ohio.