Steven Eric Hanzlik

Steven Eric Hanzlik, affectionately known as Steve, entered this world in 1953, and left it on September 15, 2017, surrounded by loved ones at home in Fort Collins at the age of 64. Steve made a lasting impact on so many who loved him. Son of John and Patricia Hanzlik, he was born in Marinette, WI, the second of five children.

An exceptionally innovative man, Steve was a Master of Mechanical Engineering and held a multitude of corporate patents. As Master level Engineer and Architect at Hewlett Packard, he was warmly known as a "bit of a rebel" by colleagues. He never stopped striving to perfect his craft and fiercely sought to invent quality products that would exceed customer expectations.

Steve was known for his unmatched wit, warm humor, and exceptional love for friends and family. An avid outdoorsman, Steve enjoyed fly-fishing on the Poudre, doting on his yellow Labrador Lily, and most importantly, spending time with his children.

Steve will join his father, John "Beep" Hanzlik. Steve is survived by his beloved children Nate Hanzlik and Lauren Hanzlik of Fort Collins, CO, Ellen Horstman of Fort Collins, CO, his mother Patricia "Bug" Hanzlik of Gulf Shores, AL, siblings Dave of Gulf Shores, AL, Karen (Hanzlik) Hoaglund of Indianapolis, IN, Mark of Pickerington, OH, Bill of Denver, CO, and their families, and his adored dog Lily of Fort Collins, CO.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Steve Hanzlik Memorial Fund created for the local Fort Collins chapter of Trout Unlimited. Gifts will go to Rocky Mountain Flycasters/ Trout Unlimited for Big Thompson River Restoration. http://www.rockymtnflycasters.org/index.php

Goes Funeral Care assisted the family. Services will be private.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Coloradoan from Sep. 19 to Sep. 24, 2017.

Memories and Condolences
for Steven Hanzlik

Sponsored by Goes Funeral Care & Crematory - Fort Collins.

18 Entries

Diane Goodman

September 13, 2023

Thinking of my cousin Karen and all the brothers!
With happy memories of you all, Diane Singer Goodman

September 29, 2017

As the days and weeks pass, and as you return to life's routine, may you continue to feel comforted by the love and support of family and friends.

Susan and Von Campbell

September 27, 2017

Our deepest sympathies. We are so very sorry for your loss. May your memories of Steve comfort you over time.

Vicki Dencker

September 25, 2017

I was very sad to hear of Steve's passing. I attended middle and high school with Steve. He was a tease and kept us all laughing. Wishing his family peace at this sad time.

Nancy McKee

September 25, 2017

My thoughts and prayers are with all of you. Steve must have been an amazing guy.....because his family (Lauren and siblings - Karen and Bill) are incredible. My prayers are for Steve's soul and all of you to find peace in time.

God Bless, Nancy McKee

Adam Provost

September 22, 2017

Steve was an amazing individual. His passion for technology and creating the impossible were truly inspiring. I had the privilege of working with him for many years when I was at HP. He will be missed! Praying for everyone in his family right now.

Kelly Bailey

September 22, 2017

We remember Steve for his love of family, friends and fishing. He was the "most fun" Jamaican Jammer soccer coach for our daugther, Tara. We will miss him sitting behind us at the CSU b-ball games and his funny and"spot-on" commentary :-) It was a blessing knowing Steve, and we pray his family will find comfort from their cherished memories too. Kelly & John & Tara Bailey

Debbie (Barton) Hard

September 21, 2017

I worked with Steve at HP for many years! He was a great engineer and a real asset to the company and a great friend to all who were blessed enough to work with him. May God comfort you all on this journey through the deep valley of grief and loss. May your memories of Steve bring a smile to your face and may God grant you the peace that passes understanding during this difficult time.

Kira Beckham

September 21, 2017

I worked with Steve at HP and I am so incredibly saddened by this news. When I saw Steve in the office recently, I simply thought to myself, "there are a few of the really good people left"! Steve had such a warm, witty, and genuine nature and sense of humor. He made the day better when you saw him. He is also incredibly respected for his engineering and inventive talents and inspired me during my young years at HP. I will miss seeing him and his smile. He was a very good man!

My warmest thoughts to the family during this time. He will be missed by all who knew him.

Jean Rowland

September 21, 2017

I always think of Steve as he was when he was about two years old...Stevie, with his white blond hair, playing in the sand in Rehoboth Beach. I am so very sorry he was so ill. I'll call Mary to let her know.

Love to the family
Cousin Jean

John and Jeanie Aronson

September 20, 2017

We had the opportunity to meet Steve when he and his family first moved to Fort Collins. We helped the Hanzliks locate and home and welcomed the young family to our city. Throughout the years the two Hanzlik children attended school with ours. We always enjoyed seeing the family at sports events, school functions, and walking around Warren Lake. We recall fondly seeing Steve at the Warren Lake Dam, playing fetch with his dog, the dog gleefully leaping off the dam time and time again as Steve tossed the tennis ball far out into the lake. Steve's friendly smile and friendly manner will sincerely be missed. We send our most heartfelt sympathy to his family and all who loved him.

September 20, 2017

My prayer goes up for Aunt Pat, Cousin Dave, Karen, Mark , and Bill, and the family. Was so saddened to hear of this loss. Steve's achievements remind me of Grandfather Hanzlik(Boo) with his innovations and engineering skills. I have happy memories of times when our families were together at Rehoboth, sitting on the back porch playing cards. I remember Cousin Steve's big smile, laugh, and teasing. I pray you can be comforted by the words in 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18. I will be thinking of you, Diane Singer Goodman (Aunt Ria's daughter)

Brent Spomer

September 20, 2017

I first met Steve when we were both working for Fisher Controls in Marshalltown Iowa as design engineers. I recall Steve designed a control valve that was big enough you could stand in it. Steve and I both migrated to HP in the early 1980's. I have read elsewhere about Steve's wit and his dislike for not making progress or adding value. I'll give you an example. Steve's first HP manager was sort of a 'slide guy' meaning he wanted his team to create PowerPoint slides for seemingly everything. Steve hated this non-value added work. I recall in one review with his boss his presented his normal set of slides plus a slide that reflected the number of slides he was creating on a weekly basis. His boss didn't think this was funny but, of course, everyone else did. Steve had a nickname for everyone.

The last few years my desk was adjacent to the lab where Steve was developing his latest products. While titled a mechanical engineer he had self taught to become much more. His products required extensive knowledge of EE, Software, firmware and an understanding the customer use model.

Frequently, when Steve was going to his lab, he'd stop by my desk to chat. He liked to talk and show off his latest invention. But he also liked to talk about the loves of his life. He kept me up to date on where Lauren was at in her pursuit of her career in dental surgery. He was so proud of her. He beamed. He talked about Nate and how his life and career was progressing as he moved from a teenager, to a young adult and beyond. When he talked about Ellen it was clear they had a relationship that many people could only dream of. His was so happy and thankful she came into his life. And most days he never left without mentioning something about Lily.

Like so many people, I will miss Steve.

Brent Spomer

September 20, 2017

We didn't get to see a lot of cousin Steve growing up in different states, but remember him as having a warm personality and with a good sense of humor. Love and sympathy from Aunt Ria's side of the family. Cousin Janet

Mike Vorhis

September 20, 2017

I consider it a great privilege to have had the opportunity to converse with Steve on a number of occasions. It was always a supreme pleasure. He was clearly heroic in so many wide circles. I regret that I'll never speak live with him again...but forget him I won't. Thank you, Steve, for your courtesy, your intellect, your enthusiasm, your creativity, your inspiration and your giving nature; I'll do my best to pass it on in your honor as my own life goes by.

- Mike Vorhis

September 19, 2017

Steve was a friend to us and mentor to my daughter, serving for many years as her soccer and basketball coach. We have many fond memories of his wit and warmth. He will be missed.

-- John and Judy Bowie

September 19, 2017

My memories of Steve Hanzlik

I started at HP as a contractor in 2008, my job was an RGS tester. Very quickly, I became a system admin where I worked for both RGS and also the graphics team (Workstation blades). This is where I met Steve.

Steve had most of the Blades that we supported; my first impression of Steve was that he was someone who needed work done and done quickly. The phrase are you done yet became a running joke with Steve, he was a no nonsense guy who has taught me a lot over the years. After a few years as a system admin, roles were changed for me and I was pulled into the graphics team with Steve workstation blades became multi GPU servers. Steve was the man who started this, with this new role I got to learn industry standard technology, such as VMware and Citrix pass-through GPU on a blade.

After a year or so NVidia came out with VGPU and now even more VM's can be on the same GPU. I was very excited to be a part of this team Steve had developed, if it had not been for Steve I don't think I would have learned what I know today.

As I got to know Steve, he found out I was a Dallas Cowboys fan. Steve being a HUGE Denver Broncos fan never failed to give me grief about the Cowboys or as he would say Cowgirls, even after winning 11 games in a row, Steve would give me grief about the Cowgirls without fail every week.

Steve will be missed by all of us. Remember him as the man he was, always bringing a smile to someone's face and never failing to get the job done.

My Sincere condolences

Waran Jepson

Vic Brown

September 19, 2017

My condolences to the family! I am very sad to hear the news of Steve passing! I worked for Steve at HP for several years, he was a friend and a mentor to me. His passion for what he did and the people around him was amazing! He will certainly be missed!!!

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