Stephen David Bond, 31, passed away Monday, August 17, 2020.

Born in Rabat, Morocco, Stephen was adopted at 10 days old by Adele and Douglas Bond. Until age 4 he lived in London, England, and until 8 in El Puerto de Santa Maria, Spain, where he became fluent in Spanish and attended Spanish elementary school. In 1995 the family moved to Corpus Christi, Texas, and finally to Pensacola from 1997. After graduation from Pensacola School of Liberal Arts in 2008, he moved to Jensen Beach, Florida, where he worked in various jobs while pursuing his passion for water sports. There he volunteered with Surfers for Autism teaching surfing to autistic children. He loved working with kids throughout his life.

After returning to Pensacola in 2014 he worked in construction jobs here and in the Florida Keys after Hurricane Irma in 2017. In Pensacola he worked as a rigger on the new bridge from Pensacola to Gulf Breeze and a massive solar panel installation at the Naval Air Station.

Stephen was very athletic, played high school football, was a fearless tackler, was a talented soccer player having learned to play in Spain, and was an excellent swimmer. While giving swimming lessons to Cub Scouts he had to retrieve an object on the bottom of the pool and rather than swim to the center and diving down, he simply swam underwater from one end of the pool to the deep end and back on one breath. His other passion was fishing and anything to do with the ocean, boating, or water skiing. Also a fearless skate boarder he wiped out more than a few times "bombing hills" on a long board.

He is survived by his daughter, Aria, the delight of his life, and her mother, Ashley. Aria will be 3 in September and regretfully will have no memory of her father. He is also survived by his parents, Adele and Douglas Bond, and his siblings, Gregory, Derek, and Julia. He is preceded in death by his uncle, Nathan Hull, who died one week before Stephen. His ashes will be returned to the sea where he always felt most at home.

Memorial Mass will be held 12:00noon Wednesday, August 26, 2020 at St. Paul Catholic Church, on Hyde Park Road. Attendees are asked to wear cheerful informal clothes, not black formal wear. The family will hold a reception to celebrate Stephens life at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, Stephen would prefer you donate to Surfers for Autism at www.facebook.com/fund/surfersforautism/ .

Stephen died of a probable drug overdose as did too many of his friends. This is mentioned as a plea to those who find themselves in similar circumstances to seek help. If one good thing can come of Stephen's death it would be to prevent others from following him.