Stephen Sunday was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to Gregg and Jody Sunday, on March 18, 1992. He was the grandson of the late John and Martha Lawless and the late Edward and Nancy Sunday.

Stephen attended the Scranton School District, where he graduated from West Scranton High School with honors. Stephen was a four-year letterman in the baseball program. He attended SUNY Sullivan County Community College in upstate New York, where he maintained a 4.0 GPA for his two years. In 2012, Stephen was the recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Scholar/Athletic Award; he was the first SUNY Sullivan student/athlete to earn this distinction. Stephen furthered his academic and baseball career at NCAA Division II St. Thomas Aquinas in Sparkhill, New York. They were the first team to win the East Coast Conference, NCAA Division II East Regional and participated in the NCAA Division II World Series.

Stephen had two passions in life, baseball and firefighting. After his baseball career, Stephen applied to different fire departments. While waiting, he attended Luzerne County Community College, where he became an EMT. On January 21, 2020, Stephen was sworn in as a firefighter with the Scranton Fire Department. He went to the fire academy in Harrisburg, where he helped many fellow candidates by motivating them mentally and physically to not give up during their training. At the pinning ceremony, Stephen was pinned with the chief’s badge of his late grandfather, John Lawless, who served as Superintendent of Fire of the Scranton Fire Department.

While his time as a firefighter in the Scranton Fire Department was not as long as he would have liked, Stephen made an impression on his fellow firefighters. He wanted to know all that he could as a firefighter and worked hard at this.

Stephen leaves to cherish his memory, his deeply grieving parents and family, as well as many friends. Life will never be the same without him, his smile and laugh, but we can all take solace in knowing that he was able to accomplish the two passions he had in his short lifetime. Stephen loved family and showed his love. He was our hero and will never be forgotten. Being a firefighter made Stephen happy, and this gave us comfort knowing how happy he was in this profession.

When leaving, Stephen would say one of his favorite movie lines, “I’ll see you when I see you.” You are missed more than you can know. Rest In Peace.