Steven Lee Van Asselt

STEVEN LEE VAN ASSELT

Steven Lee “Steve” Van Asselt, 68, died December 30, 2020, at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Columbus, Mississippi. Steve was born on September 23, 1952, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to Harold Van Asselt and Shirley Jean Vander Werf.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan and earned a Masters Degree in Business from Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. After graduation, Steve was hired by Whirlpool Corporation in Benton Harbor, Michigan as a Transportation Manager. He married Catherine Anne Murphy, and they moved to Seattle, Washington, where he worked 5 years for Weyerhaeuser Paper Company as a Transportation Manager at the company headquarters. He transferred to the Weyerhaeuser paper mill in Valliant, Oklahoma as a Transportation Manager also for 5 years. He then moved to work at the the Weyerhaeuser Columbus Pulp and Paper Complex in Mississippi. There he was Process Manager in Transportation and Vice President and General Manager of the Golden Triangle Railroad. Steve’s interest and ability in computers through the years led him to a new career path within the same company as an Information Technology Server Administrator. He was a Microsoft Certified Professional Systems Engineer and a Cisco Certified Network Associate. When Weyerhaeuser  outsourced their Columbus computer operations, Steve became an employee of Hewlett-Packard Company EDS.

After retirement, Steve studied business continuity planning and started his own computer consulting company: Logistics Data Protection Services.

Steve was kind, hard-working, practical, and some would even say, thrifty. He played tennis and his men’s doubles team went to USTA Nationals in Arizona. He enjoyed family trips to the Gulf Coast and a riverboat cruise on the Mississippi River out of New Orleans for their 40th Wedding Anniversary. He handled the computer needs at Annunciation Catholic Church for many years. He was stoic in times of adversity, never complaining about his circumstances or health challenges. Steve’s love for technology carried on into retirement. He was determined to automate his household. Whether it was setting up wi-fi lighting, motion sensors, security cameras and alarms, or automatic dog feeders, he enjoyed the challenge and success that came as a result. A great guy; faithful, stalwart, dedicated to family and church. Steve and his brother, Dave, often reflected on one of their more embarrassing moments. The two were blessed to be able to wear each other’s clothes. However, this wasn’t always
a good thing. One Sunday morning, they each arrived at church to discover Dave wearing the pants and Steve wearing the matching jacket of a ridiculously loud plaid suit, thus evoking laughter from a typically somber crowd.

Steven Lee Van Asselt was preceded in death by his parents; and his sister, Linda Jo Van Asselt.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 41 years, Catherine; sons, Lee John, (Angela) Birmingham, AL, Brad Steven, Starkville, MS, and Scott David, Southaven, MS; brother, David Jon Van Asselt, (Carol) South Lyons, MI; and aunt, Mary Ellen Staff, Salem, OR; grandsons, Ethan Lee Van Asselt and Davis Edward Van Asselt, Birmingham, AL; nephews, Trevor Jon Van Asselt and Bryce David Van Asselt, South Lyons, MI; and mother-in-law, Rosemarie Murphy, Columbus, MS.

A memorial service will be held at a later date. Memorial Gunter Peel Funeral Home & Crematory, College Street location, has been entrusted with the arrangements.

Memorials may be made to Annunciation Catholic Church: 823 College Street, Columbus, MS 39701.

“So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.”                                                     2 Corinthians 5:17