Joseph Steffen

Our wonderful father, Joseph F. Steffen, age 87, slipped away peacefully in his sleep on Monday, September 23, 2024 due to complications from a 20+ year battle with diabetes. A memorial service will be held on Friday, September 27, 2024 at 1:00 pm at Bismarck Funeral Home.

Dad was at his apartment at Edgewood Vista, which he lovingly called "the hut", with his son John and daughter Kimberly by his side, when he passed. Knowing both were there, Dad left the room to make his way to his heavenly home where he was greeted by those family members and friends who had passed before him, but not before stopping at the Rainbow Bridge to pick up our beloved pet, Pudgy.

Born on November 27, 1936 in Kenmare, ND, Joseph was the first born son to his parents Francis and Helen Steffen. Raised on the family farm, "Joe Boy" attended a country school graduating from the eighth grade. After this milestone, Grandpa asked dad if he wanted to be a priest or a doctor. When dad replied "no", Grandpa found no reason for him to continue his education and thus dad began helping out on the farm. One of dad's happiest memories was "the day they got rid of the cows". 

Not satisfied with his limited education, dad went on to successfully advocate that his sisters Sal and Kathy, and brother Jeff would be allowed to attend high school. One of dad's proudest accomplishments was when he passed the test to receive his GED in late 1960's.

After leaving the farm, dad went on to seek other career options, trying to find his dream job. During this time, he tried selling Kirby vacuum cleaners alongside his cousin John. Finding that sales wasn't his forte, dad worked for the Burke Country Conservation Office planting trees, and at various service stations in Tioga, Bowbells and Bismarck. His career in the service station business lasted from 1963-1990.

Moving to Bismarck in September, 1987, dad went on to find other jobs which gave him the chance to drive for a living. He worked briefly for J & J Transfer and Presort Plus before finding the career he absolutely loved with Bis-Man Transit. Dad starting driving for them in 1991 at the age of 55 and remained driving until retiring in 2017, at the age of 81. 

On September 1, 1962, Joseph married Lenore Johnson in Bowbells. Joe & Lee met while working in Tioga. They made their home in Bowbells where they raised their three children Kimberly, John, and Michael. Dad and mom divorced in 1984, but remained friends until mom passed away in 2007. 

Our family spent many weekends camping at Kenosee Lake in Saskatchewan, Mouse River Park and at various state and provincial parks throughout North Dakota and Canada. We also took vacations to Browerville and St. Peter, Minnesota as well as Winnipeg, Manitoba to visit family and friends. 

Our home was always filled with pets including Snoopy, Ginger, Butchie, Brownie, Smokey, Pepper, Luke, Tess, and Pudgy. Because of this, we learned to value the unconditional love of a furry friend.

Dad's faith was extremely important to him. During the time he lived in Bowbells, dad was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. After the move to the Bismarck-Mandan area, dad attended services at every Catholic Church eventually finding his "home" parish of St. Anne's. When his health no longer allowed him to attend services on a weekly basis, he watched the Sunday Mass on tv, and looked forward to volunteers bringing communion to his home. Whenever dad traveled his first order of business was to find a place to go to church. 

Some of dad's favorite things included: riding motorcycle, dancing, poker, going to the casino, attending car races, going on drives, traveling and most anything where music is involved. Our music-loving father loved going to concerts. He was an avid fan of Classic Country music and had no qualms about convincing his children, mother, or any other willing participant, to attend various events with him.  Yes, we saw Mel Tillis, Travis Tritt, Alan Jackson, the Oak Ridge Boys, Alabama, and Neil Diamond, just to name a few. Dad also surprised us with his love of ABBA and Bee Gees, hence we went to see their tribute bands when the opportunity arose. There were many trips to Branson, Nashville, Las Vegas, and to the Norsk Hostfest in Minot where he could enjoy his passion for music.

Growing up with dad as our mentor, he taught us many life lessons. He taught us to appreciate the beauty of nature, the value of a dollar, and that lying and cheating were not acceptable. When we got out of line, dad wasn't afraid to show tough love. For that, we will always be grateful.

As dad grew older, he loved watching children at play. He marveled in their energy and at their innocence. As kids, we weren't allowed to participate in trick-or-treating as dad found the activity unholy. However in time, dad grew to love Halloween, if for no other reason than to see the smiles and the costumes of the children. 

One of my favorite memories was watching dad hand out candy last Halloween while living at Edgewood. It was a cold night and hundreds of parents brought their youngsters to the facility. Dad lined up in the hallway on his scooter handing out sweet treats. I can't recall a time where I saw him quite so happy! He wanted to be prepared for this year and already had the biggest bucket of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups I have ever seen, as not to run out of candy before every child had one.

Writing this summary of dad's life is one of the last gifts I can give him. It is impossible to recap his 87 years in just a couple paragraphs. Dad lived a long and wonderful life and it’s with great hope that this will give you a brief glimpse of what a kind, compassionate, and generous man he truly was. Our lives have been forever touched and he will continue to live on in our hearts and memories. 

Those blessed to share in Joseph's life include his three children, Kimberly, John, and Michael all of Bismarck, ND. Two grandchildren, Shaun Steffen-Koster of Mandan, ND and Andrew Fosness-Steffen of Bismarck, ND. He is also survived by his sisters, Kathleen (Jim) Bonnichsen of Fargo, ND, and Sally (Boyde) Galgerud of Omaha, NE. In addition, Joe is survived by many cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Our amazing father was preceded in death by his parents, Francis (1988) and Helen (2017) Steffen, as well as his brother, Jeffrey Steffen (2016). Dad was especially close to his Uncle, Julius Steffen (2005) and his cousin, John Steffen (1961). In the weeks leading up to dad's passing he stated that these were the people he would be looking for first. It brings us great comfort to know that they are all together again.