Christie McCarthy Stier

COLUMBIA - A Mass of Christian Burial for Christie McCarthy Stier, 68, will be celebrated at 11:30 a.m. Friday, October 20, 2017 at St. Joseph Catholic Church, with interment in the church columbarium. Dunbar Funeral Home, Dutch Fork Chapel, Irmo, is assisting the family. Christie died Monday, October 16, 2017 from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) peacefully at home surrounded by loving family. Born on January 27, 1949 in Hackensack, New Jersey, she was a daughter of the late William Joseph McCarthy and Dorothea Grace Crawley. Her father’s government work took their family to Washington DC in 1952 where Christie loved and excelled in sports then graduated from Western High School in 1967. As the sixth of nine children in a Catholic family she learned the values of generosity, selflessness, cooperation, hard work, and independence that touched all who knew her. Her passion for childcare began at an early age with babysitting her younger siblings and neighborhood children. She graduated with a major in Early Childhood Education from the University of South Carolina in 1971. She took the class “Fun and Games” twice which exemplified her devotion to entertain children. She taught PE at St. Peter’s Elementary School and coached women’s basketball at Cardinal Newman. After graduating from college she worked in catering where she developed a knack for easily whipping up tasty meals for large groups. She loved cooking for family, friends, and the family business, Stier Supply Company. Christie met Jonathan Holmes Stier of Columbia in 1971 and enjoyed his sense of humor. They were married April 25, 1975 at St. Thomas More Catholic Chapel where they renewed their marital vows 30 years later in 2005. As an exceptional mother Christie instilled love, confidence, and joy in her six children. Her mothering couldn’t be contained by the walls of her home: neighborhood kids were always welcome and her children’s friends often joined in family trips. Favorite vacation spots included the beach, mountains, and their fifth-generation family lake cabin in New Hampshire. Christie generously served her children, grandchildren, their friends, and mentored other mothers. She was a doer. On any given day Christie was fixing a vacuum, painting a room, moving furniture, cleaning her pool, stopping a child from choking, praying for her children, refereeing their basketball games, teaching them to ride a bike and rollerskate, lifeguarding, loading up her large van with meals, and making life better for others. Her special dedication to children will empower generations. Hundreds of children around the state can thank Christie for teaching them how to swim in her backyard pool. Only two weeks before her death she joyfully witnessed the birth of her 13th grandchild and held her new granddaughter in her lap. The night of her death four of her granddaughters flew in from North Dakota and sang her favorite songs to her, “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “Leaving on a Jet Plane.” She completed her life’s work surrounded by the children and grandchildren she loved. Surviving are her husband, Jonathan Stier; children, Ryan Stier (Haley), Jenny Jacobs (David), Becky Johnson (Max), Patrick Stier (Melissa), Shelly Kenney (Rob), Jody Stier (Amy); 13 grandchildren, Noah, Ella Joy, Julia, Georgia, Anacapri, Lily, Denver, Cruz, Emma, Lincoln, Cora, Townes, and Naomie; siblings, Michael, Helen, George, Kevin, Glenda, and Mark. She was predeceased by her brothers, Brendan and Tracy, and her beloved, Bootsie. The family wishes to thank all her friends who assisted with her care. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Carolinas HealthCare Foundation for neurological disorders online at www.givecarolinas.org/find-your-cause/neurological-disorders.