Loved ones mourn father of five fatally shot during argument in his Kansas City home

Christina Lucier has been overwhelmed by the number of people who have reached out to her since her son was fatally shot over a week ago in Kansas City.

Family, friends and people she didn’t even know have messaged to tell her how Steven Mentzer touched their lives. At least 50 have reached out to share their condolences and stories of her son’s positive energy.

“He always had a smile on his face,” Lucier said, “regardless of what the situation was.”

Steven Mentzer died after a shooting early March 9 at the home he shared with his boss and a co-worker in the 7300 block of Park Road. Police believe an argument between several people at the home spurred the shooting.

When officers responded around 5:30 a.m., they found Steven Mentzer, 29, and another man had both been shot. Steven Mentzer was declared dead at the scene, and his roommate was taken to a hospital.

Police told the family that Steven Mentzer was shot five times in the back.

After talking with Steven’s boss, Brandon Mentzer said it sounded like his brother hadn’t been involved in the argument, and was going to tell everyone involved to quiet down. His brother was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, Brandon Mentzer said.

The killing was the 23rd homicide in Kansas City this year, according to data tracked by The Star. There had been 24 homicides at the same time last year.

‘He loved his kids.’

Lucier was close to her son, and talked to him every day, she said.

The day before he died, Steven Mentzer cooked dinner and gushed about spending the weekend with his kids. He leaves behind five children — two sons and three daughters. He had his first son with his childhood sweetheart Ashlie Dorman when he was 14 and she was 15. They welcomed another son when he was 17 and Dorman was 18.

From the start, Lucier said her son stepped up and wanted to be there for his kids, even though he was still a child himself.

“It was hard for him,” Lucier said. “It took away some of his childhood, but I don’t think he’d trade the memories for anything. He loved his kids with all his heart.”

Once he was old enough, he took on odd jobs to make money and watched the kids at night, so their mom could get her GED.

Dorman and Steven Mentzer had known each other since fourth grade, and started dating when they were only 12. After they broke up, he remained a major part of Dorman’s life and family.

Before family events and holidays, they’d pick Steven Mentzer up, and he’d spend the weekend with her and her family. He was outgoing and brought lots of laughs and smiles to their gatherings, Dorman said.

“It was just natural,” Dorman said. “He was there all of our lives.”

It’s hard now to imagine the family will celebrate Easter and future occasions without him, she said.

He especially loved spending time with his kids and Dorman’s nieces and nephews. After the couple split, they still knew him as Uncle Steven. At family get-togethers, he could often be found entertaining the kids.

‘I was really, really proud of him.’

Steven Mentzer would do whatever he could to help someone else, Dorman said. If he was having a bad day, he’d push down his negative feelings to be there for everyone around him. When she felt overwhelmed, he helped change the subject or say something “off the wall” to make her laugh.

Even though he had bills and child support of his own, Brandon Mentzer said his brother helped him without question when he was broke and short on rent. A friend who was sentenced to time in prison told him that Steven Mentzer was the only person to keep in touch with him and also sent him some money each week.

Ashley Sparks, a friend of Steven Mentzer, said she first met him when they were expecting children around the same time. He was one of the first people to visit after her son was born, and when the baby fell ill with RSV, he visited Sparks in the hospital each day to make sure she ate, took a walk and had someone to vent to.

If her son wanted to play, Sparks said Steven Mentzer would drop whatever he was doing to spend time with him.

When he felt sad, Lucier said her son tried not to let it show. She had only seen him down a few times in his life: when a close family friend died and when she and his stepfather separated.

He grew up in Clinton, Missouri, but moved to the Kansas City area with Lucier and his brother around 10 years ago when she separated from her husband. Her sons were there for her throughout the separation and constantly asked if they could help her in any way.

Steven Mentzer also moved away from Clinton so he could have a fresh start. He found himself falling into trouble in Clinton and was known as a “troublemaker” as a teenager, Dorman said. After a fight, he was kicked out of school and had to live in a boys’ home through the Division of Youth Services for several months, Lucier said.

Once he moved to Kansas City, Dorman said Steven Mentzer got and kept a job and became more involved with his children.

For the last two years, he worked in construction building decks. He was proud of his work, and often sent his mom pictures of his completed decks. Once, he brought her to a job site to show her his progress.

“I was really, really proud of him, and I told him all the time,” Dorman said. “I was glad he was doing something with himself.”

‘Steven was there with him’

When Dorman learned that Steven Mentzer had died, she was at a state wrestling match with their 14-year-old son. She worried about telling him at the competition, but knew she needed to let him know before he saw the news on Facebook.

He cried, but told his mom he wanted to stay and finish the competition. On Saturday, he lost his second match by two points, but the next day, Dorman and his coaches told him to use everything he was feeling on the mat.

He won both matches and placed third in the state.

“I wholeheartedly believe that Steven was there with him,” Dorman said. “I could not be more proud of him, and I know Steven would be so proud of him.”

Since his death, Dorman has done her best to be there for the boys. She offered them therapy and as much time off from school as they needed to process the loss. They took a mental health day, but have been trying to keep their schedules full with school and sports.

On Sunday, her family had a barbecue to honor himr. They looked at photos, reminisced about their memories with him and cried and laughed. Dorman plans to gather photos and videos that she can give to their sons, so they can remember their dad.

In his free time, Steven Mentzer loved skateboarding. Since he was getting older, he wanted to become a videographer for skaters, and brought his sons to skate parks to teach them.

Dorman said their boys bonded with their dad while playing catch or spending time at the skate park. Both sons have told her they want to skate more now to keep their father’s memory alive.

Steven Mentzer also enjoyed drawing, and made several designs that his loved ones turned into tattoos. Last month, before his death, he bought a tattoo kit for his birthday, so he could practice to become a tattoo artist himself.

His first tattoo was for Sparks’ mother-in-law. The design was a vine with four hearts in different colors to represent her grandchildren. She planned to see him again so that he could add the name of each grandchild inside the hearts.

Now, Sparks’ mother-in-law plans to leave the tattoo unfinished to honor Steven.

A GoFundMe started by loved ones will help Lucier pay for her son’s cremation and funeral service.