Obituary: Scott William Hetherington

March 13, 1947 ~ January 19, 2021

Scott William Hetherington, 73, of Sturgeon Bay, died at his home surrounded by his entire family on January 19th, 2021 after a valiant 3 month battle with pancreatic cancer.  Scott ran the race with strength, courage, dignity, and faith. 

Scott was born on March 13, 1947 to William J. and Pearl Hetherington in Plymouth, WI. The family moved to Appleton, WI during Scott’s infancy. Scott was an exemplary athlete in football and track during high school and continues to hold a record in the long jump at his school. After graduation from Appleton High School in 1965, Scott went on to study biology at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh where he was a member of Sigma Pi Fraternity.  In 1968, he saw the early emergence of computer technology and went on to study computer programming at what is now the Herzing Institute.  His career in computer sciences, with a specialty in database administration, spanned 43 years and culminated at IBM Corporation as Senior Technical Sales Specialist specializing in database software products. 

Scott met the love of his life, Maribeth, at the mere age of 14 and it was love at first sight.  Maribeth’s parents also embraced Scott and loved him like the son they never had.  Maribeth and Scott were married on September 30th, 1967 and celebrated 53 years of marriage in September. Scott is survived by his wife and three children, Sara (Jeff) Malchow, Timothy (Kelly) Hetherington, and Erin (Peter) Stahlschmidt.  He is also survived by 6 grandchildren, Joshua and Jakob Malchow, Kendra (Dustin) Schultz, Dakota Hetherington, Wesley and Sydney Stahlschmidt and one great grandchild, Lynett Schultz.  He is further survived by his mother Pearl Hetherington, his sister Lynn (James) Schnetzer, brothers, Jay (Mary Jo) Hetherington, Kim (Jean) Hetherington and Terry Hetherington, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his father and his sister, Becki Hetherington.

Scott was an active member of First Baptist Church where he volunteered as a member of the AV Tech Team and in Children’s Ministries.  He also provided support to many Christian and non-profit organizations, including sponsoring a child in Bolivia through Compassion International, support for KLOVE Christian Radio, the Door County YMCA, and also served as a volunteer in the Door County Medical Center Auxiliary.

Scott and Maribeth were avid boaters for almost 50 years and especially loved boating in Door County and the Great Lakes with other boaters that became lifelong friends. Maribeth served as Scott’s first mate and deck doll as they travelled to almost every port on Lake Michigan, Lake Winnebago, and the upper Mississippi River. After retirement Scott had a passion for model railroading, wintering in Florida, spending time with his family and many close friends, and maintaining his home, gardens, and landscaping. 

Scott was a loving, selfless, strong, faith-filled husband, father, and grandfather.  He never felt he had to be the loudest voice in the room, but when he had something to say, people listened and valued his knowledge and perspective. He was also a master of one-liners and a Jack-of-all-trades.

Scott was a faithful witness of God’s love and grace during his tumultuous battle with cancer and through it all he never asked “why me” but trusted in God’s plan for him. 

A public visitation will be held at the First Baptist Church of Sturgeon Bay on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021 from 12:00 – 2:00 pm.  A memorial service will follow the visitation at 2:00 pm with Rev. Cory Dahl officiating.  The service will be live streamed on the Forbes Funeral Home Facebook page.  Memorials may be directed to the First Baptist Church – Helping Hand Fund (610 N. 5th Ave. Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235) or the Door County Medical Center Auxiliary (323 S. 18th Ave. Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235).

My dearest Scotty, “I loved you then, I love you still.  I always have and I always will.”  – Maribeth