Fred A. Stone Jr.

Stone, Fred A. Jr,
Beloved husband, father, brother, grandfather, great grandfather, and uncle, Fred A. Stone, Jr, 90, passed away on February 4, 2011. Born on September 14, 1920, in Chicago, Illinois to Fred A. Stone, Sr. and LenaVee Stone. Fred Jr. graduated from Hirsch High School in Chicago where he was the president of the Senior class, and from Michigan State University, with a BS degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management in 1947. While in college, he played basketball for two years as the center for the Spartan team, took a leave of absence from school to serve in the Army in the US and Germany during World War II, and then returned to play basketball for two more years. When the Spartans would travel, his roommate was Robin Roberts, the Hall of Fame pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies and Baltimore Orioles. Fred worked for Michigan State University running the food service operation at Shaw Hall. In 1956 he was hired by Saga Food Service and moved his wife and young family to Tempe, Arizona to operate the food service program for Arizona State University. When he retired in 1970, he was the Vice President and Regional Operations Director for Saga Food Service and was based in Houston, Texas. He returned to Tempe and opened Adventure Travel Service and enjoyed owning that business through his second retirement in 1989. He celebrated his retirement by taking his wife, five sons and their wives and children to Hawaii for a week of relaxation and enjoyment. Adventure Travel organized much of the travel arrangements for the visiting teams during the early years of the Fiesta Bowl. He was an ardent supporter of ASU athletics for the past 50 years, was a president of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, and was a charter member of the Tempe Diablos and Tempe Diplomats. He also served on the Military Affairs committee of the Chamber for many years. He was a active member of the Tempe Kiwanis club and he acted in the Broadmor School PTA "Broadway Players" presentations of Music Man, Annie Get Your Gun, Pajama Game, Oklahoma and Hello Dolly. He was the King of the Way Out Oktoberfest in 1973 and was active in the Sister City organization for many years. Fred Jr. was a proud member of the Tempe First United Methodist Church for over 50 years and was active in the ministry outreach for feeding the homeless. He developed menus, bought and prepared the food, and delivered it to various centers in Tempe and Phoenix for many years. His love of his family, church, and country are part of the legacy he has passed to his family. His sense of humor was always present and was often a barometer of how he was handling the stresses of his many surgeries and medical challenges throughout his life. His parents Fred and LenaVee Stone and his sister, Patricia, preceded him in death. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Phyllis M. Stone, sons Michael (Laura), Fred III (Mary), Bill (Carolyn), Jeffrey (Dacia), and Dan (Debbie), 18 grandchildren, 24 great grandchildren, sisters Priscilla Anderson of Denver, Colorado and Barbara Duryea of Oroville, California and numerous nephews and nieces. A memorial service honoring his life will take place at the Tempe First United Methodist Church on Saturday, March 5, 2011 at 3:00 p.m. with a reception following in Ross Hall. Interment will be in the Memorial Garden at the Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Tempe First United Methodist Church Homeless Program or Hospice of the West. Memories and condolences may be left at the Guest Book at www.obits.azcentral.com