Obituary of Stevens Dimant

Dr. Stevens Dimant January 2, 1919 - May 13, 2007 Stevens Dimant was born to Ivan and Violet Dimant on January 2, 1919 in England and was raised in Melbourne, Australia where he attended Melbourne Grammar School. He completed his premedical school at Cambridge University in England. Returning to Australia, he obtained his medical degree at Melbourne University Medical School. In 1944-46, he joined the Royal Australian Air Force as a medical officer, serving in the South Pacific. After extensive training in surgery, orthopedics and neurology in England, Stevens started his neurosurgical training in Oxford, England. There he met and fell for the love of his life, Sheila Cramer-Roberts (apparently only his eyes were visible above his surgical mask but that was enough according to Sheila!). They married in 1951. After 5 years in the department of neurosurgery in Manchester, England, Stevens, Sheila and their three children immigrated to Tacoma, Washington. Stevens practiced neurosurgery in the Seattle-Tacoma area from 1957 to 1985. In the early days he covered much of the Pacific Northwest as the primary responder to neurosurgical emergencies and trauma as well as elective surgery. He was a leader in his field, introducing several new neurosurgical concepts and innovative procedures, most of which are still an integral part of surgical practice today. Stevens enjoyed teaching eager students locally and as distant as Zimbabwe, Indonesia and China at different times during his career. In the Tacoma hospitals he was recognized by his British accent, his high expectations for patient care and on at least 1 or 2 occasions, was spotted in the middle of the night clad in pajamas while checking on a sick patient. After retirement from surgery, in conjunction with the Dept. of Labor and Industries he developed Tacoma Panel Examiners, where evaluations were made in the complex arena of workman's compensation. He continued this work for 10 years until retirement at the age of 76. The next several years were spent enjoying sailing the waters of Puget Sound, British Columbia and the Mediterranean. These trips included a circumnavigation of Vancouver Island as well as a 3 month excursion from Gig Harbor to San Diego including 35 ports of call. Most importantly, his crew always consisted of himself and his beloved first mate, Sheila. So much enjoyment came from time spent with family. Vacations included boating and water skiing in the summers and snow skiing in the winters. Storytelling and book reading were Stevens' great sources of enjoyment and sharing these experiences with his children and grandchildren were what he did best. These memories will last for ever. There were many get togethers in the later years but the best memories were created in La Paz, Mexico, on the Oregon Coast, in Rocky Point, Mexico (50th wedding anniversary) and, more recently, Sheila's 80th birthday. He is survived by his beloved wife Sheila of almost 56 years, 3 children - John Dimant (Debra) of Gig Harbor, Sally Galbraith (David) of Tucson, AZ and Martin Dimant (Shelly) of Gig Harbor - and 5 amazing grandchildren - Sarah, Hannah (Dan), Hailey, Libby and Morgan. The family would like to express special thanks to two phenomenal women with huge hearts who helped Dad enormously in his last few months - Isabel and Sonia. Services will be held at St. Luke's Episcopal Church at 3615 No Gove St. on Saturday, May 19 at 2pm. There will be a reception immediately following at the Church. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that remembrances be made to St. Luke's Episcopal Church.