<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
</head>
<body>
<p><em>Stephen Jay Nyquist </em>passed away September 3, 2025 from prostate cancer. His daughter, Susan, reported that, in Steve’s final days, he enjoyed listening to the West Point Glee Club perform “The Corps.” Even at the end, when he could not sing, his lips would mouth the words, especially “Grip hands…” and “the Corps… .”</p>
<p>Steve was fondly remembered by his classmates who served with him as Company K-2 became Company D-4 in 1965 and then Company H-4 in 1967. One of Steve’s roommates commented at length: “Steve was always in good humor, at times a clever practical joker with a smile on his face, a good friend. Hailing from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Steve (unlike the rest of us, even other Yankees) was never fazed by the frigid weather and snowstorms that we all at times experienced while standing in formation in the dark at reveille. Coming from an athletic family…, Steve was skilled in a wide variety of sports and notably savvy in sports in general. Missed by all… .” Another roommate summed up Steve: “He was a good man, a great classmate, a great friend, and always someone that you could depend on. He was a serious man who didn’t take life too seriously.” His Howitzer entry concluded, “Always easy-going and quick to make friends, Steve will without a doubt be a success in anything he does.”</p>
<p>Steve was born to Melvin and Shirley Nyquist on October 10, 1946 in Gwinn, MI and grew up in Marquette, MI. In high school, Steve played football (All-Conference), basketball, baseball and track. He sang in the boys glee club, mixed chorus, and in his church’s choir. Steve served on the student council and was elected class vice president. Finally, he led his Methodist Youth Fellowship as president and treasurer. Steve graduated from Graveraet High School in Marquette in 1964.</p>
<p>That year, Steve joined Company K-2. As a plebe he ran indoor track and played football his last three years. Throughout his four years, Steve served in the Cadet Band and in the Chapel “B” Choir.</p>
<p>On June 6, 1968, Steve married Joyce Conero of Highland Falls, NY in the Cadet Chapel. They had one daughter, Susan. Their marriage lasted 26 years, until 1994, when they divorced.</p>
<p>Choosing Signal Corps, Steve completed the Infantry Officer Basic Course and Ranger School (with tab) at Fort Benning, GA and then graduated from the Signal Officer Basic Course at Fort Gordon, GA. Then, Steve went to Fort Sill, OK, where he completed the Artillery School’s Communications Officer Course. He served several months at the brigade signal officer with the 2nd Brigade of the 24th Infantry Division at Fort Riley, KS before going to the Canal Zone, where he graduated from the Jungle Operations Training Course.</p>
<p>In 1969, Steve joined the 501st Signal Battalion, 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam as a radio platoon leader and then spent most of his tour as battalion signal officer with the 2nd Battalion, 501st Infantry. After graduating from the Signal Officer Advanced Course at Fort Monmouth, NJ, Steve served as company commander in the School Brigade there. Next, Steve was the distinguished graduate at the Automated Data Processing Staff Officer Course at Fort Benjamin Harrison, IN. His last active-duty assignment was as assistant director, Installation Systems Directorate, Computer Systems Command at Fort Lee, VA. Steve completed his active duty in 1975 with a Bronze Star Medal and three Commendation Medals.</p>
<p>From 1975 to 1978, Steve was purchasing manager with American Hospital Supply Corporation in Waukegan, IL. During that time, he earned a Master of Science degree in management science from Farleigh Dickinson University. In 1978, Steve joined the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, MI as research and design engineer focusing on automotive safety. He retired from Ford in 2007.</p>
<p>Staying active in the U.S. Army Reserve, Steve served initially as a mobilization designee with the Computer Systems Command. Then, in 1980, he joined the 70th Division (Training), where he served in the G-4 shop in both division engineer and communication engineering positions. Later, Steve was the battalion S-2/3 with 1st Battalion, 330th Infantry Regiment and later became its executive officer. In Steve’s last five years in the Army Reserve, he served as deputy commander of the 5032nd U.S. Army Reserve Forces School and retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1996 with a Meritorious Service Medal.</p>
<p>After retiring, Steve spent a lot of time spoiling his two granddaughters, Melissa and Vanessa. He remarried Dannette Murphy, a fellow Ford retiree, on Saint Patrick’s Day 2013. They were married by Steve’s daughter, Susan, a pastor. Steve and Dannette spent a lot of time traveling in an RV they bought, visiting his grandfather’s log cabin in the woods near Gwinn in the Upper Peninsula, seeing his stepdaughter Haley and her family nearby in Michigan and visiting his daughter and granddaughters in Indiana. Steve and Dannette both sang in their church choir and relished their mission trips with them. At home in Canton, MI, they enjoyed their Airedale Terrier and three cats.</p>
<p>Steve was interred on October 4, 2025 at Gwinn Cemetery, MI. Steve was especially fond of “The Corps,” the last words of which are appropriate here now: “Grip hands tho’ it be from the shadows. While we swear, as you did of yore. Or living, or dying, to honor, the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.”</p>
<p><em>— Classmates</em></p>
</body>
</html>