STEPHEN L. NEW

1950 - 2020

NEW, STEPHEN L., DMD
Stephen L. New, DMD, passed away July 19, 2020 at his home in the presence of his wife and children after a valiant fight against cancer.
Dr. New was born in Atlanta, Ga. On June 21, 1950, to Eleanore and James C. New Jr, the second of two sons. His maternal grandparents were Marguerite and George Adams, and his paternal grandparents were Bessie and James New, all of whom played a major role in his having a fun and carefree childhood.
Dr. New's father was in the Air Force and was transferred quite a bit during his childhood. Fortunately, the family got lucky and he was stationed in Orlando, allowing Dr. New to spend most of his childhood in Orlando and nearby beaches.
Dr. New was always seeking fun and friends, and pre-Disney Orlando provided that opportunity for a flat top crew cut boy. In the sixth grade he was elected to go on an overnight train ride to Washington, D.C. In those days, only two students from each school were selected for the five-day trip.
Also, in the summer he graduated from elementary school, he had he dream of his life and made the Little League All Star Team. The team went undefeated until loosing in Tampa in the regional finals. What a thrill!
Junior high school was much of the same thing, but Dr. New's attention was turned away from organized sports to surfing and the ocean. However, he maintained his high interests in school matters, and he did well enough to be selected President of The National Honors Society, which allowed him to attend Mercer University on an academic scholarship.
At Mercer, Dr. New excelled, and upon graduation in 1972 was selected to attend the first class of the University of Florida's College of Dentistry, which was to become known as The Charter Class.
After graduating from the dental school in 1976, Dr. New opened his own practice, where he practiced for over 44 years. He was a member of the American Dental Association, The Florida Dental Association, and the Alachua County Dental Association, of which he was a former president.
Dr. New's outside interests included everything related to gator sports, but he especially loved following Gator football, basketball and baseball. Dr. New's love of the water included water skiing, fishing, boating in The Bahamas, and off shore fishing in the gulf which he enjoyed tremendously.
Dr. New is survived by his wife of 35 years, Patti, and three children Mariah, Ashley and Kailey; brother Jimmy and his two children; three grandchildren, Madison, Jackson and Stella; two sons in law, Stuart Henry and Michael Claytor; brother in law, Frank Smith Jr. and wife Lak; sister in law Janice Then and nephew Alex Then and wife Lauren and children Everly and Leto.
Everyone that knew him knew he was one of a kind. We close this out with our favorite family quote that he would say at the dinner table each night: May you live every day in paradise. Where every day is a holiday, every meal is a picnic and every moments magic. May you learn to weather the storm by dancing in the rain. May your years be long and your tears be few.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Dr. New's memory to the UF College of Dentistry:
https://dental.ufl.edu/alumni-giving/make-a-gift-online/.
Please visit his memorial page at
www.williamsthomas
funeralhome.com.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
WILLIAMS-THOMAS
DOWNTOWN
352-376-7556