Steven L. Mader

Steve L. Mader, age 45, passed away unexpectedly on Friday, September 24, 2021, following complications from a stroke. He was born on December 7, 1975, son of Cy and Sue (Mischler) Mader. On October 27, 2006, Steve married the love of his life, Katie Oatman. Together they had two children: Delilah, 13 and Lincoln, 11.

Steve started working at Smoky Lake Maple Products in 2014, when the company began, as a Lead Fabricator. He was very meticulous, detail orientated and very mechanically minded which helped the company grow to become the most prestigious maple equipment manufacturer in the industry. Steve was a jack of all trades and a master of all of them. He was innovative and could always come up with a creative way to fix just about anything. Steve was a wonderful woodworker, remodeler, cook and musician, as he loved his drums. He loved to camp with his family, especially Halloween weekend up in Door County, where he would create amazing costumes for his kids and always win first place in the contest. Steve loved his family, including the family cats. His children were his pride and joy. He loved playing catch with Lincoln and attending father/daughter dances with Delilah. Steve was a generous, giving man who was always willing to help someone in need. His sense of humor, strong work ethic and loving personality will be deeply missed.

Steve is survived by his wife, Katie Mader; children: Delilah and Lincoln Mader; parents: Cy and Sue Mader; sisters: Crystal (James) Short and Sierra (Erik) Bangart; grandfather, Robert Mischler; father and mother-in-law: Bill and Linda Watson; brothers and sisters-in-law: Ben (Stacey) Oatman, Jennifer Oatman, Matt (Tracy) Oatman, Vicki Watson and Amber (fiancé, Steve) Dictus; numerous nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, other family members and many friends.

Steve was preceded in death by his grandparents: Cyril and Eleanore Mader, and Irene Mischler; father-in-law, Tom Oatman, as well as several other family members.

A public visitation will be held for Steve on Wednesday, October 6, 2021, at the Verkuilen-Van Deurzen Family Funeral Home KAUKAUNA LOCATION, 2401 Fieldcrest Drive, Kaukauna, from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Masks will be required for those attending the visitation. A private service will be held prior that can be viewed via live stream on the Verkuilen-Van Deurzen Family Funeral Home Facebook Page at 4:00 p.m. For online condolences, please visit www.verkuilenfh.com.

The Mader family would like to extend a special thank you to all of their family and friends for the outpouring of support during this difficult time. Also a thank you to all of the medical personnel that have been involved with Steve’s care over the last few months.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.