Colleen Mary Currens was born January 6, 1974 in Cincinnati, Ohio along with her twin brother, Craig. The twins and their parents, William (Al) and Jeannine (Jean) moved to Cedar Grove in Franklin County in 1978. Colleen attended Franklin County High School and graduated in 1992. She was a member of the softball team at FCHS and graduated a member of the school’s Academic Hall of Fame. Colleen was a friendly, outgoing person who loved country music and line dancing. Her friends were one of the things that made her happy in life, as was her twin brother – the person who she said influenced her most. She attended Ball State University and graduated with a degree in Secondary Education. When asked what the most important thing in life was, she replied “educating youngsters”.
She was an amazing female athlete. She excelled in gymnastics from the time she was a young girl through her college years. Colleen began gymnastics training when she was eight years old. She began to compete when she was nine and competed a total of fourteen years. She trained at Cincinnati Academy of Artistic Gymnastics under Jim Thomas and Queen City Gymnastics Club under Gary Warren. She ultimately received a scholarship to Ball State University and continued competition during college under Coach Mary Roth. She broke many gymnastics records at BSU, was named Most Valuable Player in 1996, and was named MAC (Mid-American Conference) Gymnast of the Week. She participated in such events as vault, uneven parallel bars, beam and floor exercise.
Married to Michael Stevens in 1998, the couple had two sons, Kyle and Kolten. Colleen and her family were planning on moving to Florida and were looking for a home and interviewing for jobs. She and her father were returning from a job interview when they both died tragically in a car accident. Colleen’s mother, Jean, and brother, Craig created a legacy to her in Franklin County. They established the Colleen Currens Stevens Memorial Scholarship Endowment in the Franklin County Community Foundation. The scholarship benefits female athletes from Franklin County High School who are pursuing a college education.