Kevin Cleereman

My Life Story Kevin Cleereman, 37, passed away unexpectedly at his home in Boise on July 25, 2017. He was born on July 4, 1980 in Elk Grove Village, IL, the second son of James and Joanne (Clerc) Cleereman. During his formative years, Kevin and his family lived in the Chicago suburbs, primarily Glen Ellyn, IL. There he attended Ben Franklin Elementary and Hadley Middle schools. Competing in soccer, track and chess brought him pleasure during those years. While in high school, he came to discover and develop his interests in forensics, chorus and theatre thanks to the encouragement of several of his high school teachers, especially Deb Barber. During those years, we were very surprised when Kevin sang an A cappella solo in the opening act of the school play Animal Farm. That was typical of Kevin; always amazing and amusing us with his unique and unpredictable personality. Kevin graduated from Glenbard West High School in 1998 and was a National Merit scholarship winner. He attended Wittenberg University in Springfield, OH and received his Bachelors in Computer Science in 2001. He went on to receive his Master’s degree from Wright State University in Dayton, OH in Artificial Intelligence and completed coursework toward his PhD. In 2012, Kevin joined his parents in moving from Ohio to Boise where his brother Brian, sister-in-law Katie and nieces Ruby and Evie were living. The past five years were special for us. We were together and able to share holidays, celebrations, and to explore this beautiful area of the United States. Kevin especially adored his two nieces and pictures of the three of them reflect this. “Uncle” was a presence in their lives. Some of our fondest memories of Kevin will include sitting around campfires during our camping trips; hikes; cuddling up to our grey cat Libby; playing Scrabble (by the modified Cleereman rules); and Fourth of July Birthday celebrations with fresh berry pie. Kevin excelled at his chosen profession of Computer Science and took great pride in performing a stellar job. Most recently, he was a Senior Software Engineer involved in development of high performance in-memory software with the Terracotta R&D department of Software AG USA Inc. He was a loving, gifted, generous, complex and intelligent man. We were all blessed and honored to be a part of his life for 37 years. We will all greatly miss Kevin and the joy he brought us. Kevin is survived by his parents, Joanne and Jim; brother, Brian; sister-in-law, Katie; nieces, Ruby and Evie; and his Grandmother, Janet (Christiansen) Clerc. He is also survived by many loving aunts, uncles and cousins. He is preceded in death by his Grandparents, Kenneth and Grace Cleereman; Grandfather, Eugene (Jack) Clerc; and his cousin, Katie Swank. The funeral service will begin at 10:00 AM on August 8, 2017 preceded by a gathering at 9:00. Both the gathering and the funeral service will be at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Idaho City. Following the service, family and friends are invited to Hilltop Station (12342 E Highway 21, Boise) for fellowship, memory sharing, and enjoying Kevin’s favorite restaurant. Please dress comfortably as Kevin would and avoid suits and ties. Funeral services are under the direction of Accent Funeral Home and Cremation, Meridian, 208-888-5833. Remembrances may be left for the family at www.AccentFuneral.com. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Kevin’s name to one of the following: Gateway House, 2232 Vine Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45219 The Idaho Youth Ranch, 5465 W. Irving St., Boise, ID 83706 where Kevin volunteered as a math tutor.