BRADLEY JAMES STROTHKAMP

Bradley James Strothkamp, 58, passed away on May 10, 2025. He was born on Nov. 23, 1966; the eldest child of Robert Strothkamp and Mary (Sparks) Strothkamp.
He learned car repair and body work from his stepdad “Hap” Olaf Hider, and worked with exotic animals alongside his stepmother, Charlie Strothkamp.
Always an excellent student, he spent a semester in Scotland with his Uncle Jim and family, then returned to Parkview High School and graduated in 1984. He backpacked Europe and the Middle East until the money ran out. He returned to Springfield and went to college at SMSU, graduating with a degree in marketing in 1996. He had a few different jobs throughout the years, including the Humane Society and Bass Pro Shops.
Bass Pro was where he met his first wife, Karen. Married in 1996, the two moved to South Korea to teach English and do some more travelling, this time in East Asia. After returning to the US, he began working as an Information Technology specialist at Lakeland Behavioral Health Hospital, eventually becoming the IT Administrator.
He met his current wife, Esther Strickland, in 2010 while at Lakeland. They spent 15 years together traveling, laughing, joking and finding ways to prank each other and merge their eccentricities. He cared for her after a serious accident in 2020 and together they made it through that and many other challenges stronger in their love for one another.
He is survived by his wife, Esther; his parents; his sister, Kristy (Mark); his nephew, Terry Shaffer; niece, Elisabeth (Dayton) Looney and their children; his aunts, uncles and cousins, as well as by many other family and friends.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents; uncles, Raymond, Billy and Donald; and stepdad Hap Hider.
Services were held on Monday, May 19, at Meadors Funeral Home in Republic.