Steven Paul Dolhay

Steven Paul Dolhay (affectionately known as “Bud”), age 83, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, December 9. He was born on May 10, 1942, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Bud was married to Patricia (Noble) Reese and later divorced in the late 1980s. Since the early 1990s, he shared a loving partnership with Susan Weng, with whom he spent many happy years at Selkirk Lake in Shelbyville, Michigan.

Bud was raised by Sydney and Viola (Jack) Smith and, in his late teens, was reunited with his biological parents Louis Dolhay and Carol (Stewart), along with seven siblings.

He attended Kalamazoo Central High School and was an avid athlete who excelled in baseball, basketball, football, and golf. Bud coached all of his boys’ sports and countless other kids in both baseball and football. His love for athletics continued throughout his life — he played basketball and softball well into his 50s, and remained an avid cyclist and golfer into his early 80s.

He especially enjoyed his weekly golf league at States Golf Course in Vicksburg and an annual trip to Northern Michigan golf courses for the last seven years. Bud was a dedicated fan of all Detroit sports teams and a lifelong lover of harness racing, having owned several horses throughout his life.

An outdoorsman at heart, Bud loved fishing and hunting. He spent his childhood on Selkirk Lake in Shelbyville, a place that always held his heart. Remarkably, he spent the last 27 years of his life living just two doors down from his childhood cottage — returning to the lake that shaped so many of his happiest memories.

Over the years, Bud held several jobs, most notably a long and fulfilling career at Aeromotive Industries, where he built lifelong friendships and countless fond memories. Earlier in his career, he worked alongside his brother Tom Smith as a school bus driver for the Kalamazoo School System. He often shared how much he enjoyed driving younger children and those with intellectual disabilities, as well as transporting school groups to events — a job that reflected his patience and kind heart.

Bud is survived by his partner Susan Weng; sons Scott Dolhay (Joy Campbell), Chris Dolhay, and Kevin Dolhay (Amy Nosich); grandchildren Shawn, Abby, Brooke, Sydney, and Audrey Dolhay; great-granddaughter Aisylnn Dolhay; and siblings Rick Dolhay, Susie (Burkhold) Dolhay, and Joe Dolhay. He was preceded in death by his parents and siblings Bob Dolhay, Lynn (Converse) Dolhay, Judy (Lem) Dolhay, John Dolhay, Jack Smith, and Tom Smith.

Bud will be remembered for his warmth, humor, endless jokes and storytelling, and the joy he brought to everyone who knew him. His laughter and stories will echo in the hearts of all who loved him. His legacy lives on in the love of his family, his lifelong friends, and the quiet beauty of Selkirk Lake that he called home.

A celebration of life will be held in the spring of 2026.