Benjamin A. Stephan, age 33, passed away at home on September 21 after a brave battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his loving family.
Born April 24, 1990, in Elkhart, Indiana, he is the son of Douglas and Christine Stephan and the brother of Shannon Stephan. He married Brittany Lynn Carrithers in 2016, who survives. Also surviving are their children, Liam (10), Elizabeth (6), and Emerson (1), grandparents, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.
Ben loved his family dearly. He and Brittany would attend the children’s activities like soccer, football, dance, gymnastics, and more where they created many new friendships. It was important to Ben that the children know their extended family and have cultural experiences. He loved seeing the children try new foods and visit new places. He found the perfect match with Brittany as they both enjoyed exploring new restaurants, impromptu date days, and traveling together.
Ben also enjoyed traveling with extended family and friends, and loved snow skiing, cooking, and eating. Annual family vacations were a highlight and he especially loved Hawaii. He traveled to Australia, Greece, Turkey, Spain, Dubai, England, and Wall Street in New York. Ben snow skied from an early age and loved visiting Colorado to hit the slopes. He loved learning about the culture and food in the places he visited and often determined the next trip based upon the cuisine.
Ben connected with people through cooking and one of his passions was making family and friends happy through food. Whether it was Thanksgiving dinner or grilling on the Big Green Egg, everyone loved what he was making! Ben could be depended upon to choose the best restaurant, order food for the table, and choose Dim Sum from the cart. He liked to try new restaurants with Brittany where they tried different ethnic fare.
Ben graduated from the Scott College of Business at Indiana State University. He started his career at Allrisks in 2012 and continued with RT Specialty when the companies merged. He led a successful career in the field of insurance achieving Vice President at RT Specialty. Ben enjoyed golfing and fun outings with his colleagues and clients and had many friends in the field. The comradery and family atmosphere at work were an important part of his life.
Ben was an excellent golfer and loved the sport. He was humble about his skills, but they were obvious on the course. He was especially excited when he and his team won the Annual Presidents Cup at work and enjoyed bragging rights for the year. He was eager to teach Liam and Libby how to golf and had fun taking them out on the course.
Ben saw his legacy as his children and the team he built during his career at RT Specialty. He loved his children dearly and was a great mentor to his team at work.
Ben’s life will be celebrated on Saturday, September 30 at 11:00 a.m. at Northland Church, Longwood, Florida. Pastor Gus will officiate. Link for streaming of the service will be available soon.
It was important to Ben for Liam, Libby, and Emi to have a good education and be provided for knowing he would not be here. To honor his wishes, contributions to their college funds will be appreciated in lieu of flowers. Checks to Brittany Stephan with “Stephan Children College” in the subject line may be sent to Northland Church at 522 Dog Track Road, Longwood, Florida 32750.
Our family would like to express our greatest appreciation for the prayers and support during the last year. We are also grateful for the compassionate care Ben received at Florida Cancer Specialists and Research Institute and Moffitt Cancer Center.
Please copy and paste the bellow link into your web browser to access a live stream of the celebration of life.
https://boxcast.tv/view/memorial-service-for-ben-stephan-up5wszy2rg7zlk9hhs7r?_gl=1*kied7b*_ga*MTU5MzMwMTMwNi4xNjk1ODM5NTg1*_ga_PXBBF7HVWQ*MTY5NTgzOTU4NS4xLjEuMTY5NTgzOTY4OS4wLjAuMA
