Steve DeGroff's Memorial Web Page

Steve went to be with Our Lord on March 30, 2000 almost one year after being diagnosed with AML.
Steven Matthew DeGroff:
08/01/1982 - 03/30/2000

Journal

August 1, 2008

Happy 26th Birthday Steven.

We miss you every day!
Love, Mom, Dad & Jessica

I feel Steven's presence nearly every day. I know he is watching out for all of us and it feels wonderful having a special angel all to ourselves.
Steven's sister Jessica experienced this yesterday. Jessica went on an job interview yesterday morning for a position she really wanted but was unsure if she would be considered for the role. Later that same day she received a phone call with the job offer.
It is very appropriate that Jessica start her first full time salaried job (with benefits) since she graduated from college on Steven's birthday. That's right she starts her new job as an Assistant Manager at a Leasing Company today! How can anyone not believe that her big brother is watching out for her. I know I believe it with all my heart.

God Bless you all and thank you for continuing to remember how special Steven's was (and still is) to all of us.

****************************************
March 30, 2008

I cannot believe that it has been 8 years today since you left us. We think about you everyday and cannot wait for the day when we will be together again forever.

I was looking through some old e-mails and found something I want to share with everyone on this site. This letter was written by one of Steven's very dear friends - Corey Hobin from Baldwinsville, NY. Corey and Steve had grown up together and even after we moved to NC Corey and Steve remained close through e-mail. Corey read this letter at Steven's funeral and it touched me so much then and once again after 7 years. I want to thank Corey for being such a good friend to Steve and for being a wonderful friend to our family. We love you Corey!
***********************************************************
Steven Matthew DeGroff- 1982-2000
I was blessed with the chance to see Steve over our February break and in doing so, I saw a side of him that I hadn't seen in two years, since he moved. I saw his amazing sense of humor and his determination. We arrived late Friday night because of a snowstorm in Pennsylvania, so we couldn't see him that night, but the next day, when I saw his smiling face, a wave of happiness came over me; one like I've never felt before. I didn't know what to expect after having read the updates on his web page, but when I saw him, it was simply amazing. We greeted each other with the ever so familiar adolescent greetings and talked for a little bit. Then, the room emptied, and it was just the Beav and I. The one thing that kept coming up in our conversation was how much he wanted to leave the hospital. That made me very sad because I knew that he had better things to do: he had college plans to start making, after being accepted to NC State; he had his girlfriend to spend time with; he had his other friends to spend time with; but most importantly, he had his family to take care of. He wasn't the kind of person to worry about how he was doing; he wanted to make sure everyone else was ok. He was selfless like that; everyone came before him.
One thing I'll never forget, that is apparently a direct quote, I got off of his web page this Friday after we got the announcement in school. It said that he loves us all and doesn't want us to worry. That is the most amazing thing I've ever heard. I don't know very many people that would say that, given the conditions. And because he said that, I never will worry. And neither should anyone else. I know, as well as anyone else here should, that he meant what he said, and he is just fine, and he always will be.
I want to share just a couple of passages that I've heard, that can be applied to Steve like no other.
"The cure for all the ills and wrongs, the cares, the sorrows and crimes of humanity, all lie in that one word "love." It is the divine vitality that produces and restores life. To each and every one of us it gives the power of working miracles, if we will." ---Lydia M. Child (1802-1880)
Everyone here loved and loves Steve. There's no question about that. And it's right about love. Love brought him into this world, and love is going to take care of him as he watches and takes care of us all. The other passage says more about how I personally feel about Steve, and how I'm certain many more of us do:
"They that love beyond the world cannot be separated by it. Death cannot kill what never dies.
...Nor can spirits ever be divided, that love and live in the same divine principle, the root and record, of their friendship.
...Death is but crossing the world as friends do the seas; they live in one another still...
This is the comfort of friends, that though they may be said to die, yet their friendship and society are, in the best sense, ever present because immortal."
---William Penn
Steve only crossed a sea. That's all. I will see him again, as will all of you. And it is very comforting to know that he loved us all the same, that we loved and continue to love him.
I want to say thank you to his wonderful family: to his Aunt Denise, for bringing me down to North Carolina to see him; to his mother Diane for making me feel so welcome in her home; to his father Fred for making me, by far, the GREATEST egg/cheese sandwich on a bagel I've ever had; and to his sister Jessica for beating me senseless in every single Nintendo64 game imaginable.
And finally, I'd like to say thank you to Steve. A thanks for allowing me to shave in your hospital room because I hadn't in days; a thanks for keeping me laughing in Mr. Foster?s 10th grade chemistry class; a thanks for having an America Online screen name with a saved password so I could fulfill my online addiction; a thank you for being there for me in elementary school, middle school and junior high school; a thanks for not forgetting about me when you moved to North Carolina; and a thank you in advance for being there whenever I may need to talk to you.
When somebody dies, a cloud turns into an angel, and flies up to tell God to put another flower on a pillow. A bird gives the message back to the world, and sings a silent prayer that makes the rain cry. People disappear, but they never really go away. The spirits up there put the sun to bed, wake up grass, and spin the earth in dizzy circles. Sometimes you can see them dancing in a cloud during the daytime, when they're supposed to be sleeping. They paint the rainbows and also the sunsets and make waves splash and tug at the tide. They toss shooting stars and listen to wishes. And when they sing windsongs, they whisper to us, don't miss me too much. The view is nice and I'm doing just fine.
On behalf of everyone here, I want to take this opportunity to say thank you, and I love you, Steve.
ch

Read Journal History

Hospital Information:

Home Address:
100 Cobalt Ridge Rd
Hillsborough, NC 27278
919-732-6374

Links:

E-mail Author: ddegroff@aol.com

---

 

Your gift will help millions of people stay connected with friends and loved ones during challenging times.

---

 

This page has been viewed 29139 times.

Note: The foregoing information was authored by the patient, parent or guardian, or other parties who are solely responsible for the content. Such announcements or their content are not necessarily endorsed by CaringBridge, Inc. or any sponsoring agent.  This information does not confirm that anyone is or was actually a patient at any facility.