Stephen Chantos

Stephen John Chantos, 55, of Urbana, formerly of Danville, passed away at 7:56a.m. Monday (July 17, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana. Steve was born November 21, 1961, on Shepherd Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, TX, the son of Dr. Stephen J. and Judy Chantos. Steve is survived by his wife, Kyla Chantos of Urbana; one son, Ben Chantos of Urbana; one daughter, Ellaina Chantos of Urbana; one sister, Ellyn Chantos (Jerrod) of Summerlin, NV; one brother, Scott Chantos of Dana Point, CA; one niece, Hannah Chantos of Irvine, CA; one nephew, Noah Chantos of Laguna Beach, CA. Steve was preceded in death by his maternal and paternal grandparents, his father, Steve Chantos and his mother Judy Chantos. He lived with his wife, Kyla and daughter Ellaina in Urbana, IL. He graduated from Schlarman High School in Danville, IL 1979 where he played baseball, basketball and golf. Steve graduated from the University of Illinois where he received his bachelor's degree in Fine Arts. Upon graduation, Steve shared his heart for kids working at Cunningham Children's Home for several years. He was also commissioned for painting and sketching at various points throughout his life. As an avid lover of sports and the arts, Steve enjoyed watching his beloved St. Louis Cardinals and Green Bay Packers. He had a passion for all things creative from music to writing to sketching to painting. As a self-taught base guitarist, he loved to play and sing with his father-in-law, Dave Duggins. As his stage character, Mutt, he and his band, Double Down, played in and around Urbana over the years. Steve also wrote and illustrated children's books and wrote many short stories to express his passion and creativity. Steve's greatest treasure was his family. He married the love of his life, Kyla, who touched his heart like no other and allowed him to pursue his passion for the creative throughout their 11 year marriage. Steve also loved being a dad to Ben and Ellaina. They were always the apples of his eye and the love that came out of him was a reflection of the love they gave. He was so proud of them and would just glow with pride when he talked about them. A celebration of life will be held late summer or early fall with close family and friends, details of which will be forthcoming. In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, the family would ask to discover and share his children's book There Once Were Some Limericks for KidsA Silly Assortment of Funny Bone Ticklers to keep Steve's creative spirit alive in the world. The link to discover his book is on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Steve+chantos Please join Steve's family in sharing memories, photos and videos on his tribute wall at www.sunsetfuneralhome.com.