Tamara Dawn Sweany Steel

Our loved one was born September 27th, 1965, in Fort Wane, Indiana, to Lyle and Helen Steel of Defiance, the fourth child of five siblings. Later, Tammy met and married Jim Casper of Cecil, Ohio. After a few years, she divorced Jim and married Richard Kohorst of Oakwood, Ohio. Richard joined the U.S. Army and deployed to West Germany in 1989. Tammy followed him there with her three girls, one of whom was a baby. While in Germany, Tammy met Ian Micah Sweany who was transitioning to the Presidio of Monterey, CA, for language school in 1990. Tammy followed him to school and they were married on August 1st, 1990. Tammy remained with her new husband throughout the remainder of his Army career which included frequent transfers. Their assignments included: Fort Meade, MD; Fort Irwin, CA; Korea; and Fort Huachuca, AZ. After his retirement in 2005, they moved to Fort Sill, OK, for work. She moved with him to additional assignment locations, including Reston, VA; Charlottesville, VA; Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD; MacDill Air Force Base, FL; and held down the home while he went on five deployments to Afghanistan. During her life, she not only raised her daughters, but also took in her nephew, Allen Steel, and her grandson, Nick Vega. Tammy is survived by her brother, Lyle "Bump" Steel, Jr., Helen "Sissy" Day; her sister Debbie Williams; four children, Tasha, Jessica, Sami, and Allen; and seven grandchildren, Nick, Gabby, Emily, Eric James, Cameron, Jaiden, Kaylyn, Myka, Ace, and Cali. Tammy was a special person who, despite a number of personal challenges, was fearless in her aggressive approach to life. She was open to new locations, new jobs, and new people. She was usually open and honest in her dealings with others and was very personable. She supported her family and friends and was ready to help others in their time of need; she would choose those she helped instead of donating to a cause--employing a "hands-on" methodology.