John N. Stein, D.V.M.,

John Nelson Stein was born in October of 1946, just after WWII was declared over. As the country celebrated an international victory, a light was brought into this world that would shine on so many. John was born and raised Cleveland, OH. After graduating high school, he attended Ohio State University followed by the University of Miami to obtain his doctorate in Veterinary. Dr. Stein decided to stay in Florida and moved to Fort Pierce where he opened his vet clinic in 1972. He also met Laura Ann Harris, a prominent equestrian within the community.

They married in November of 1976 and welcomed their first, and only child, Janice Lee, in December of 1981. Tragically, Laura died in 1985 due to a fatal accident with one of her thoroughbreds. Stein raised Janice as a single dad, infusing her with his sense of humor. The father-daughter duo traveled throughout the state, often visiting race tracks, their favorite past-time.

Janice was grown and on her own when Stein found himself at a check up of his own—an eye exam—laughing at someone else's jokes: Karen Walker's, the eye doctor's assistant. After a few dates, they were inseparable. They married in 2009. When Stein went through aneurysm surgery in 2011, Karen nursed him back to health. The family was told then the surgery would last at the most six years. They were blessed with 12 years.

Not only was Stein a literal walking miracle, he was the ultimate Renaissance man. As a veterinarian, his compassion, humor and candor were appreciated by thousands of clients from Miami to Melbourne. In all but the most serious visits, Stein's appointments were enlivened with his humor, typically wise cracks delivered in a ,gravelly baritone.

At the urging of a vet tech who couldn't stop laughing when Stein called, Stein tried his hand at standup comedy, eventually taking the stage at a couple of top New York venues.

From there he trained as an actor and filmmaker, selling his vet practice in 2001 and moving to Maine, so he could attend acting school at Rockport College. One of his short films, "Ludwig: A Secret Life," about the love life of a plastic chair, won an award at a Vero Beach film festival seven years ago.

He also wrote comedic novels, and seemed to always be at work on a new one.

Stein and Karen eventually moved back to Florida and he resumed his veterinary career. He completed another book, titled "When You Get To The Dead Horse, Take A Left," a quick, funny read about a veterinarian in a small town in the 1970s.

Stein was excited to have started with the new Veterinary Medical Center of Indian River when his second aneurysm struck. His humor did not fail him even with a terminal diagnosis. For visitors to his bedside, he managed to muster a spot-on impersonation of a jolly but frustrating nurse at the Cleveland Clinic Weston where he was flown by helicopter at the end of January in hopes of emergency treatment. But surgeons there found the aneurysm inoperable; he was sent home to his wife Karen and hospice care. He died February 25 at his Winter Beach home.

He is survived by his wife, Karen Stein, daughter, Janice Stein, grandchildren Laura Brianna, Cash and Barrett, and stepson, Matthew Shaler. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.