Christopher Scott Stenz

Christopher Scott Stenz, devoted husband and father, innovative technology professional, active sportsman and prominent figure in the Newtown youth sports community, died suddenly on October 14, 2010 in Danbury Hospital after battling leukemia since August. Mr. Stenz was forty-one years old. Mr. Stenz is survived by his wife of seventeen years, Cheryl (Valeika) Stenz; their three children, Charlotte, William and Jack of Sandy Hook; parents, Carol and Roger Stenz of Norwalk; brother, Todd Stenz, sister-in-law, Julie Stenz and nephew, Beckett Stenz, all of Trumbull; parents-in-law, Tyra and Ray Valeika of Powder Springs, Ga.; brother-in-law, Steve Valeika, sister-in-law, Katie Valeika and niece, Lilly Valeika of Athens, Ga. Christopher Scott Stenz was born August 3, 1969 in Greenwich. After growing up in Norwalk, Mr. Stenz graduated from Fairfield College Preparatory School in 1987, where he was a standout football player for the Jesuits. He attended Providence College, where he met his future wife, Cheryl Valeika, and graduated in 1991 after receiving a BS degree in Business Administration and Finance. Professionally, he spent eighteen years at DataViz Inc. in Milford, where he eventually rose to the position of Director of IT Operations and eStrategy. A prominent and respected figure in the Newtown Youth Sports community, Mr. Stenz spent countless hours developing young football, lacrosse, basketball and baseball players. He had recently spearheaded a cross-sport initiative in Newtown with the Positive Coaching Alliance, a group dedicated to creating a character-building youth sports environment. Mr. Stenz was also an avid fly fisherman, recreational golfer, and stalwart fan of the New York Football Giants He will be greatly missed and long remembered by his family and friends as a man of unwavering character and unfathomable generosity, whose endless joy for living life to the fullest was contagious to all those around him. Calling hours will be Sunday, October 17 from 3 to 6 p.m. in the Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday, October 18 at 11 a.m. in St. Rose of Lima Church, 46 Church Hill Road, Newtown. Interment will follow in St. Rose Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made in Mr. Stenz's name to Kevin's Community Center, PO Box 37 Newtown, CT 06470 or to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, PO Box 4072, Pittsfield, MA 01202 or www.leukemia-lymphoma.org To leave an online condolence go to www.honanfh.com.