Family, friends to host fundraiser in memory of Rocky Point alum

Family, friends to host fundraiser in memory of Rocky Point alum

Bryan Steuer. Photo from the Steuer family

Bryan Steuer will be remembered by his friends and family as someone who could hold the world together and yet be exceedingly humble. The Rocky Point native passed away on May 18 at the age of 34.

“Bryan lived by two simple things: Do the right thing and be there for people,” said Bryan’s sister Lisa Steuer, a former employee in TBR News Media’s editorial department. “When someone passes away you’re inclined to talk good about them, but when you’re talking about Bryan it’s really true.”

Bryan Steuer, standing, with siblings Joe and Lisa Steuer. Photo from the Steuer family

Her brother was laid to rest at the end of May, and in August family and friends of Bryan are planning to host a fundraiser to establish a college fund for his 4-month-old daughter. “We just want to make sure she is taken care of, because that is what Bryan would have done,” said Kevin Cain, a family friend and co-owner of Lithology Brewing Co. in Farmingdale. “If Bryan was here and things were opposite he would have done the same thing for my family.”

Bryan’s passing came as a shock to the very core of the family, according to his sister. Her brother’s death came only a month after he attended her wedding in the role of man of honor along with their brother, Joe.

Joe Steuer, the youngest of the Steuer siblings, said his older brother was the guy who walked him through everything, from getting married to buying a house. “Bryan was basically our leader,” Joe said. “He was everything I looked up to be.”

As a kid Bryan was both intelligent and athletic, his family said. He played basketball, soccer and baseball at Rocky Point High School before graduating fourth in his class in 2002. Steuer graduated from the University of Delaware and went to work as a chemical engineer for ExxonMobil. He worked hard and was promoted section head of numerous departments while at the same time helping to create two patents with the company. ExxonMobil eventually transferred him to Texas where he lived with his daughter and his wife until he died suddenly from an unknown ailment.

“He had a really big heart, and for a guy as smart as he was, he was a really caring person — he always checked in on you and made sure you were okay,” Bryan’s uncle and Rocky Point resident Dave Steuer said. “My family, we’re just shattered now. He was really kind of the glue that held us all together.”

Lisa remembered her brother in terms most brothers likely hope their sister would — as her protector. He helped her find her classroom as she walked off the bus at Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School. Years later, in college, she would text him using American Online Messenger and talk with him nearly every night as he helped her learn how to make new friends and get over the stress of school.

“Bryan was somebody unique in this world, and he didn’t have to tell people the good he was doing — he just did the right thing.”

— Lisa Steuer

“In this sort of age, we’re living in a time where you go on the internet, and it asks you ‘what’s on your mind,’ we’re so inclined to tout ourselves,” Lisa said. “Bryan was somebody unique in this world, and he didn’t have to tell people the good he was doing — he just did the right thing.”

Bryan Steuer is survived by his wife Maritza, daughter Alejandra, brother Joe, sister Lisa, and his parents, John and Kathy.

The Bryan Steuer Memorial Fundraiser will take place at Lithology Brewing Co., 211-A Main Street, Farmingdale on Aug. 18 from 5 to 8 p.m. There is a $25 suggested donation at the door, and the event will feature happy hour specials at the bar and free food. The Steuer siblings, Joe and Lisa, will be guest bartending, and any tips they earn will go toward the fund as well.

For more information or if you wish to donate, email [email protected] or search Bryan Steuer Memorial Fundraiser on Facebook.