Steven Kuhse

Although his life was not always easy, Steven Kuhse was a gentle soul with a resilient spirit who was anxious to see where life would lead him. Taken from this world much too soon, he will be dearly missed by those who dearly loved him.

As 1991 dawned in America, the number of users on the web topped one million while movies like Terminator 2 and The Silence of the Lambs entertained us. Nirvana introduced us the to sounds of grunge music and the American family was never the same after having met the Simpsons on television. This was the same year that Theresa Hawks gave birth to a baby she named Steven, into the world in Plainwell, Michigan, on October 31st. He faced challenges as a young boy and became a ward of the state at the age of five. Steven was later adopted by the Kuhse family, but he eventually ended up living in Bethany Home in Grand Rapids when he was a teenager. He earned his GED during this time and honed in on his natural drawing skills. When he was 18 Steven came to live with his grandparents, Steve and Sheila Smith.

There were so many things that made Steven such a unique young man. He was a kid at heart who had the best laugh - kind of like a hyena! Steven was totally into playing his guitar and even had hopes of becoming a guitar builder one day. He was blessed with a teacher, Mr. Bengelink, who was a positive influence in his life and got both an amplifier and guitar for Steven. Steven was grateful for his loving family and wanted to change his name back to his birth name of Hawks, and he had hopes of leaving the area to get a fresh start soon. Steven liked all kinds of food, especially fried chicken and mashed potatoes, and he also enjoyed going to the library to check out comic books and surf the web. Playing video games was another favorite activity.

With what should have been decades left in which to write his life’s song, Steven Kuhse was taken from those he loved. He was a bit of a free spirit who often did things his own way with dreams of making a life doing something he loved. Steven’s memory will never be forgotten.

Steven Kuhse of Galesburg died on May 24, 2012. Steven’s family includes his grandpa and grandma, Steve and Sheila Smith; sisters, Alyssa and Shaila; uncle and aunt, Eric and Sherry Smith; and special cousin, Brendan. Services for Steven (Hawks) Kuhse will be held at 3 p.m. on Friday, June 1st at the Life Story Funeral Home, Betzler-Kalamazoo, 6080 Stadium Drive; 375-2900. Memorial contributions may be made to the family. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com where you can leave a memory or sign the online guestbook.