Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

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DLX737200
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Posts: 1668
Joined: Tue May 29, 2001 6:42 am

Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 12:31 am

Hey everyone. I’m writing to share sad news. My good friend of 17 years and fellow Airliners.net photographer, Ozell Stephens Jr., also known as 727Lover on these forums, passed away today. He had a stroke just after Halloween and was progressing well but he contracted COVID and it is believed he passed away from complications stemming from that. He was the most passionate aviation hobbyist I ever met and we shared a close friendship over our geekiness for airplanes. We met in 2004 on this website when I lived in Orlando and he lived in Tampa. We shot photos together several times over the earlier years of our friendship at MCO, TPA, SRQ, MIA, CLT, ATL, JFK and more. Ozell loved loud airplanes, especially the 727 and MD-80s. He loved being a part of this website and really felt like it was an honor every time one of this photos got accepted to the site. I will truly miss him and our fun conversations. I'm glad he gets to live on through his photos, though. Rest in peace, Ozell!





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Moose135
Posts: 3318
Joined: Mon Oct 04, 2004 11:27 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 1:36 am

I'm so sorry to hear that. I've enjoyed his photos and thoughtful forum comments. I'll certainly miss him.
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KPDX
Posts: 2513
Joined: Wed Dec 14, 2005 10:04 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 1:58 am

Very sad.. Rest in peace Ozell. I've enjoyed your contributions to the website!
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hoons90
Posts: 3993
Joined: Wed Aug 01, 2001 10:15 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 2:29 am

Wow, incredibly saddened to hear this. Rest in peace!
I also remember him as an avid contributor to the forums as well.
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Dazed767
Posts: 5012
Joined: Tue May 18, 1999 11:55 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 4:11 am



He was passionate about this hobby, really sad to hear of his declining health in recent months. RIP Oz. :worried:
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cpd
Posts: 7717
Joined: Sat Jun 28, 2008 4:46 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 8:27 am

DLX737200 wrote:
Hey everyone. I’m writing to share sad news. My good friend of 17 years and fellow Airliners.net photographer, Ozell Stephens Jr., also known as 727Lover on these forums, passed away today. He had a stroke just after Halloween and was progressing well but he contracted COVID and it is believed he passed away from complications stemming from that.


So very sorry to hear that. RIP.
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hrtsfldhomeboy
Posts: 93
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2007 1:37 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sat Jan 02, 2021 12:16 pm

I was fortunate to have met Ozell on more than one occasion. Enjoyed his company at Airliners International 2019 in Atlanta where we basked together in the shine of the Delta 767-200 at the Delta museum together, spent an afternoon of friendship watching jets from a balcony at the Renaissance, and more dear to his heart I found myself in his generous company while in Sarasota briefly with work, where he proudly referred to himself as the “King of SRQ.”

Ozell was a guy who was happy to be around airplanes, but more than that, happy to be a participant in the global effort to photograph airplanes and share them here and elsewhere, always valuing the friendships made, I believe, more so than the photographs taken.

Rest easy friend. You’ll be missed.
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yerbol
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Posts: 323
Joined: Mon Feb 15, 2010 1:18 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Mon Jan 04, 2021 5:27 am

Rest in peace Ozell. You will be missed.
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phatfarmlines
Posts: 2579
Joined: Thu Sep 27, 2001 12:06 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Mon Jan 04, 2021 8:57 pm

I'm very sad to hear this. He was an active contributor to the TPA/SRQ threads over the years and I enjoyed my discussions with him regarding TPA developments and history going back almost 18 years on the civil aviation forum. He will be missed.
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LeeYangzao
Posts: 24
Joined: Sun Feb 08, 2015 7:51 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Wed Jan 06, 2021 4:55 pm

Sad to hear this. Hope everyone can stay safe!
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747d10
Posts: 253
Joined: Sun Nov 17, 2013 4:02 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sun Jan 10, 2021 6:11 pm

May he Rest In Peace. I enjoyed his great photos and enthusiasm.
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dgorun
Posts: 41
Joined: Fri Aug 26, 2005 1:54 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Wed Jan 13, 2021 4:50 pm

May he rest in Peace. His great photos will continue to live on the site.
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canyonblue17
Posts: 827
Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2008 12:22 am

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Tue Jan 26, 2021 5:42 pm

Sad to hear this. I had the fortune of sharing my home airport PBI with him on a few occasions. Gracious and passionate photographer. He will be missed.
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ghost77
Posts: 4623
Joined: Wed Mar 01, 2000 2:07 pm

Re: Photographer Ozell Stephens Jr. Passed Away

Sun Feb 14, 2021 8:00 pm

Sad news. Terrible news. RIP Ozell!

g77
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