Walter Stanton Obituary

Col. Walter C. Stanton, Jr. KIAWAH ISLAND - Col. Walter C. "Stan" Stanton, Jr. (Ret.), of Kiawah Island, SC, peacefully passed away Nov. 5, 2022, in the care of Roper Hospice Cottage in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Stan was born into a military family on April 19, 1927, in Tacoma, Washington. His father, Col. Walter C. Stanton, Sr. (USMA '26), was a career army officer as was Stan's younger brother, James D. Stanton (USMA '58). His mother, Louisa Layng Stanton, hailed from New York State and enjoyed the life of an army wife. The seeds for Stan's career in the military were sewn early in his life while his father taught Math at West Point. He dreamed of joining the "Long Grey Line" and following in his father's footsteps. He attended Sewanee Military Academy and Sullivan's Prep before attending West Point as a member of D1 Company and the class of 1950. Immediately upon graduation, he was sent to the Korean War as a 2nd Lieutenant, where he commanded his first Platoon of soldiers. On his return from Korea, he visited family in Atlanta, GA, and had a blind date for New Year's Eve with the lovely Ann Shoun - daughter of family friends. The sparks flew and within the year they were married and off to a posting in Paris, France. During his thirty years of military service, Stan and Ann would live in France, Germany, Georgia, Virginia, West Virginia, Kansas, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and North Carolina. He would also serve three years of combat duty in Korea and Vietnam and was awarded two bronze stars, one with valor, a Purple Heart and two Citations. Stan's passion for history and travel meant the family moves between postings were often car rides with lots of stops along the way to educate his children in geography, American history and how to share the back seat of a station wagon. Of all the postings he experienced, the back-to-back tours in Hawaii were heaven sent. As a boy, he spent summers with his grandmother in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, where he learned to sail and love time on the water. Hawaii gave him the opportunity to renew this love affair with sailing. He had two sail boats during those tours and sailed in the open waters around Oahu, as well as the neighboring islands. He always had a good crew, competed in many races, and enjoyed sharing the sailing experience with family and friends. After 30 years of service, Stan and Ann retired to Kiawah Island to be close to the water he loved and his three children. Ironically, the same person who taught him to sail as a boy presented young Stan with his first gift of toy soldiers. When Stan left for school, the growing collection was packed away in his parents' basement. Over the years the basement flooded, and the soldiers' condition deteriorated. While cleaning out his parents' house, he discovered the soldiers and began to re-paint their uniforms. A 43-year hobby was born. He was meticulous about historical accuracy as he cast, painted, and built dozens of dioramas on his way to assembling a collection of near 10,000 figures. He shared this dedication with the likeminded men of the South Carolina Military Miniature Society and served as a mentor for many years. Stan and Ann loved living at Kiawah and "Stan" was a long-time president of the Ocean Woods homeowners Association. Summer evenings would often find Stan sitting on the back deck of Sea Marsh, Myer's Rum in hand, watching dolphins feeding in the marsh. If you were fortunate enough to join him, you would be offered a Mai Tai, hear some fun stories, some Kipling poetry (his favorite) and as dusk moved to night there is a good chance he would add some salty military singing. Stan was predeceased by his wife of 66 years, Ann Shoun Stanton and brother, Col. James D. Stanton (USMA '58). Stan is survived by his children, Retta S. Koch (Jack), Murray S. Neale (Randy), Walter C. Stanton III (Nan); grandchildren, Brittany Koch (Nino), Elliott Koch (Meg), Ellie Davis (Tripp), Murray Koch (Gueren), Al Neale (Betsy), James Neale (McKenna) and four great- grandchildren. A Celebration of Life will be held at The Sandcastle on Kiawah Island, February 18th at 11:00 AM. In memory of Stan, donation can be to following: The Long Grey Line Fund at USMA westpointAOG.org/giving South Carolina Coastal Conservation League, Inc. coastalconservationleague.org Charleston Area Therapeutic Riding Scholarship Fund [email protected]. Visit our guestbook at legacy.com/obituaries/charleston