Obituary - Steven C. Vandeberg

Steven C. Vandeberg, 67, passed away after fighting the good fight against COVID-19 at Select Specialty Hospital-Midtown in Atlanta, GA, Sunday, April 26, 2020.

Cremation has taken place, and a memorial service will be held in Havre, MT, at a later date when friends and family can gather to celebrate his life.

His family has suggested memorial donations be made in Steve's honor to Trout Unlimited or Pheasants Forever.

Holland & Bonine Funeral Home has been entrusted with services and arrangements.

Please visit Steve's online memorial page and leave a message of condolence for his family at http://www.hollandbonine.com .

Steve was born on February 4, 1953, in Shreveport, LA, to Lois Vandeberg. He was raised in Havre, graduating from Havre High School in 1971. Steve was a proud member of the 1970 Blue Pony football team that won the state championship his senior year.

Following graduation, Steve attended Washington State University, majoring in animal husbandry.

In 1973, he married Debbie Grant in Havre. The couple later divorced.

Steve worked for many years for Merck and Company as a pharmaceutical sales representative and traveled extensively for work. His career took him to New Jersey, which was quite an adjustment for a native Montanan. He returned to Havre for a time, then headed back to New Jersey before settling in Suwanee, Georgia. Steve's career with Merck eventually lead him to Merial, where he continued to work in animal health products and was the Director of Endectocide Marketing.

In 2013, Steve was honored by the National Agri-Marketing Association with the Marketer of the Year Award. He retired in 2017.

While working at Merial, he met Jenny Trudeau, who was the love of Steve's life. They were friends for many years before they started dating in 2014. Steve was the first and only man she dated after the death of her husband in 2007. They traveled far and near in "Beauty," Steve's Corvette, and enjoyed the precious time they had together.

Steve and Jenny's family enjoyed trips to Montana to fly fish and spent a Christmas together in Big Sky. The couple planned to marry, but Jenny passed away in 2018 due to cancer. Steve was adopted into Jenny's family and remained very close to her children and grandchildren who referred to him as "Papa Teve."

Steve was a good and true friend to many, always putting the needs of others first. He loved to fly fish, especially at the Bighorn River in Montana where he fished many times a year.

He was a constant traveler, not only for work, but for pleasure. Steve vacationed in Europe several times, most recently for the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy invasion. He went to South America more than once and loved Buenos Aires. Steve traveled to Africa last year to see the mountain gorillas in Rwanda and to tour four animal preserves in Kenya. He enjoyed pheasant hunting in Montana and South Dakota.

Steve was a great cook and especially loved to barbecue. He would often gather his friends at his home in Georgia while he presided at the grill. Steve also loved to tell a story, always making sure to include all the details. He was very devoted to his mom, and they shared a love of cooking. Steve kept her memory alive by continuing to make her recipes and by sharing them with friends.

Steve was preceded in death by his significant other, Jenny Trudeau; his mother, Lois (Edwin) Erickson; uncles, Walter, Alfred, Don, and Elvin Vandeberg; and aunts Alice Bunton, Mary Ann Ness, Vivian Sullins, Charlotte Hertsgaard and Rosella Gonder.

Steve is survived by aunts Sharon (Frank) Bennett of Coeur d'Alene, ID, and Shirley (Ivan) Nelson, Missoula, MT; Jenny's children, Laurin (James) Dunleavy and Thomas (Jill) Trudeau, all of Atlanta, GA; Jenny's grandchildren, Mac, Eloise, and Parks; his cousin Jim Sullins of Belgrade, MT, who Steve considered a brother; numerous other cousins and many wonderful friends.