Timothy D. Schaner's Obituary
Mr. Timothy D. Schaner, 39, passed away on April 30, 2024. Tim was born February 2, 1985, to Frank S. and Pamela J. (Stough) Schaner in Muskegon on a very cold Ground Hog’s Day. (He always thought that the tradition was nonsense.) He attended Mona Shores High School, where he enjoyed playing the saxophone, and graduated from there in 2003. From a young age Tim focused on being a computer programmer. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree with a major in Computer Science from Michigan State University in 2007. Tim was the third generation to graduate from MSU’s College of Engineering. He remained a lifelong Spartan fan, flying his Grandpa Stough’s MSU flag at his home. Upon graduation, he stayed in East Lansing to begin work as a programmer for Auto Owners Insurance. He later moved to Wyoming when he accepted a programming position with GE Aviation and lastly moved to Farmers Insurance where he was an applications developer. He loved Christmas, often keeping Christmas lights burning long after the season ended. He lovingly displayed some of his Stough grandparents Dicken’s Village at his home. At Christmas his family came to rely on him to always supply the home baked meringue cookies from the Stough family recipe. (His were better than his mom’s!) He loved running and was a 'car guy', although he was very practical, finding a model he loved and keeping it. He loved Star Wars and Dr. Who, and online gaming with a fondness for Zelda. He considered himself a member of "Gryffindor", of the four Hogwarts houses from the Harry Potter novels. He liked to try out new and unique cuisine but also had a confessed fondness for hot sauce and Cheez-its as well. While at MSU Tim made life-long friendships. He traveled regularly to his long-time friend's houses for group visits, often challenging themselves with "Escape Room" adventures. He played online games weekly with his close friend, Justin, who knew him well. He and Tim would get together every 2 - 3 months for in-person weekend visits where they would be gaming, watching movies, grilling, playing lawn games and just catching up. He traveled with family and friends and had a special love for Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado which he visited several times. He very much enjoyed hiking in whatever place he happened to be in. He even hiked by himself at Washington Monument State Park. Tim was kind and considerate to everyone and loved his family and friends and wanted the best for them. He would help in whatever way he could. He helped his brother learn programming so that he could switch careers. He was known to make extra effort to find 'just the right gift' for his nieces, nephew, and family for holidays and birthdays. (Like a technical book about airplanes for his nephew who has an interest in flying.) No matter the situation, he would always look at the bright side and provide help. Tim's personality was that of the "absent minded professor" and he had an engineer's mentality. He believed in logic and practicality. (When he was in grade school, he saw no logical reason to practice handwriting over and over and balked at completing those assignments. It turns out now that he was right!) Tim was baptized as an infant at Prince of Peace Catholic Church. He received first Communion and Confirmation at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church. He was spiritual and a thoughtful Catholic. Tim’s family and friends miss him very, very much but take solace from the knowledge that he is at peace with a loving God and relatives who've gone ahead of him in heaven. Survivors include his parents, brothers Steve and Ryan, sister-in-law, Gynell, two nieces and one nephew (Hannah, Chris and Abby), grandparents Frank and Mary Ellen Schaner, three aunts and one uncle and many cousins. A service to celebrate and remember Tim’s life will be held Friday, May 31, at 11:00 AM at The Lee Chapel of Sytsema Funeral and Cremation Services, 6291 S. Harvey St., Norton Shores, MI 49444. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service. A luncheon and gathering time will take place after the service, in the funeral home family center. Contributions in Tim’s memory may be made to The Gillette Nature Association at the Muskegon Community Foundation.
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