Joey “RED” Heistand, 42, of Leesburg, FL, lost his battle with Lymphoma Friday, October 13, 2017 in Orlando, Florida, with family by his side.
Commonly known as “Red” he was born July 1, 1975 in Midland, Michigan, the first son of Robert and Rebecca Heistand. He was a graduate of Umatilla High School, Lake-Sumter State College and Lake VoTech.
He married his sweetheart in 1995 at Mission Inn Resort in Howey-In-The-Hills, FL and they had two beautiful daughters, Scarlotte and Lydia. He was a computer specialist and a concrete specialist for Dura-Stress, Inc. for 18 years.
Red was a drummer (and also played piano, harmonica and guitar) and he shared stages with such acts as The Marshall Tucker Band, The Drifters, Alice Cooper and many more. He was the drummer for many churches, including his current church home of Fairway Christian Church in The Villages, FL. He was also a special effects artist, being the creator of the Leesburg Haunted Maze and raising thousands of dollars for the Easter Seals in Sorrento, FL at the Haunted Woods while he was a teenager. He was known for his exceptional make-up abilities and imagination.
Red was a Talented actor as well and you can find him in movies such as “Save the Gator Queen”, “The Essence of Irwin” and “Magical Gathering” starring alongside Colin Mochrie or T.V. shows such as “Dr. G Medical Examiner”. He was a sound and lighting specialist and D.J. He could speak any dialect or accent and did voice over work for online children’s books.
Red was known as an avid music lover, a fan of baseball, race cars, history and science. Red was always the life of the party, he loved entertaining people and helping others. He strived to help kids of all ages and backgrounds and you could sometimes find him speaking to fostered and group home kids about becoming their own success story. He was a “dad” to many kids who didn’t have one. He was proud of his own children and a supporting, loving father who believed his greatest accomplishment was his two girls. He loved his church family and found no better fulfillment than to praise God with his drumming. Red was the guy everyone went to when they had a bad day or when they wanted to do something fun. He was everyone’s friend.
He is survived by his wife, his true love of 22 years, Georgia; daughter, Scarlotte Butler and son-in-law Craig Butler of Los Angeles, CA; daughter, Lydia Heistand of Leesburg, FL; brothers, Shane (Tiffany) of Leesburg, Jesse (Amber) of Mt. Pleasant, MI; niece, Sarah Heistand of Leesburg; nephews, Ozzy, Delsin, Axl of Leesburg; sister, Amanda Herr (Thomas) of Leesburg,; parents, Gregg and Cindy Fricke of Leesburg, Bob Heistand of Mt. Pleasant, MI, Becky Roath of Orlando, FL; aunt and uncle, Hal and Suki Heistand of Anna Maria Island, FL; and a countless number of friends and church family. He was preceded in death by his father-in-law, Tony Williamson.
Services will be held at Fairway Christian Church in The Villages, Florida on Thursday, October 19, 2017 at 3 p.m., interment to immediately follow at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens in Leesburg, FL.
