Stanley Trail

1930 - 2025

STANLEY TRAIL
Born: March 19, 1930
Died: September 13, 2025
Stan Trail (a. k. a. Stanley M. Trail), after a not particularly courageous battle with old age, lost that struggle and died at Oak Crest Retirement Center in DeKalb Illinois on September 13, 2025.
The third of three sons of working immigrant parents, C. Archie and Alma M. (Rae) Trail, he was born at home in Bristol, CT on March 19, 1930. He attended public schools in Bristol and in Sandusky, OH and graduated from Sandusky High School in the top ninety percent of his class in June 1947. At the age of twenty he received the Bachelor of Arts degree from Bowling Green State University with a major in Mathematics and minors in English and Psychology.
In late Winter 1950-51 he entered the Army of the United States. He successfully completed the Army's Basic and then its Advanced Infantry Training Programs at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Although not in the Infantry very long, he was a quick learner when it came to the trooper lexicon and remained fluent with it throughout his life. In 1953 he separated from the Army in Chicago where he had been with the Office of the Commandant at Fifth Army Headquarters. After his separation, he was a laborer in factories and in the home construction and road building industries in Connecticut and Ohio. He returned to Bowling Green for a Bachelor of Science in Education and then taught mathematics in the Cleveland (Ohio) Public Schools. He went from there to The Graduate School at the University of Connecticut (Storrs) from which he received a Master of Arts degree in June 1955. He continued at UCONN as a full-time student until 1957 when the funding support provided him by the Federal government was exhausted. He then took a position at Rhode Island College of Education (later Rhode Island College) as an Assistant Professor of Mathematics. In June 1961 he received the Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph. D) from UCONN and, in the Summer of 1962 attended a National Science Foundation Summer Institute for College Mathematics Teachers at Oklahoma State University (Stillwater). He remained there as a part-time Instructor in Mathematics and a part-time Statistics graduate student. In June 1967 he graduated from OSU with a Ph. D. in Mathematical Statistics. That Fall he joined the Mathematics Department (later the Department of Mathematical Sciences) at Northern Illinois University and helped in the founding of the Department's Statistics Division (later Statistics Department.) He retired from NIU in June 1995.
In December 1966 he and B. Ann Catlin Davis, a very long time after they first met, were married in Bartlesville, OK. Stan and Ann came to DeKalb with their three daughters in August 1967 and had great lives there until death did them part.
At times he was a member of The Institute of Mathematical Statistics, The American Statistical Association, The American Psychological Association, The American Educational Research Association and The Mathematical Association of America. He was a supporter of the Westminster Presbyterian Church of DeKalb, and enjoyed skiing and racquetball when he was able.
He was almost always comfortable with small children and with animals. He was an M-1 sharpshooter and later a pacifist. Although he was somewhat slight in stature, no one ever stole his lunch money, and no one ever kicked sand in his face. He was of Scottish descent. He did not really know what an app was. Sometimes he did not completely understand a New Yorker cartoon. He was not particularly timid when faced with risky situations.
He was preceded in death by his wife, by his parents, by his son Jeffrey A. Trail, by his stepson Michael D. Davis, by his brothers Robert W. Trail and Douglas R. Trail and by his nephew Gary Trail.
He is survived by his daughters (who on many occasions shared in the saving of his life), Sally Davis of DeKalb, Candace (Richard) Reeves of Lakeway TX and Lisa (Vit) Stravinskas of Rockford IL. Other survivors are his grandchildren, Michael Pipestone (Maggie Riegel), Lena Ann Parrott (Derrik Fox), Daniel (Carissa) Summerskas, Matthew Stravinskas and M.E. Stravinskas (Marco Brandt Lopez). His nephews, Steve, Dave and Chris Trail and his niece, Pamela Trailsmith, also survive.
It was his wish that, in lieu of flowers, friends, family and everybody else perform an extra, deliberate and unselfish act of kindness favoring a known or unknown, deserving or undeserving person of their choice (perhaps a florist).
The family would like to thank the employees of Oak Crest for the friendship and attention he received over the years. We would also like to thank Toni Hughart, DNP of Northern Illinois Palliative Care, and the staff of Northern Illinois Hospice, all of whom were compassionate partners in Stan's final journey.
A Celebration of Life will be held on October 18, 2025 from 2pm to 4:30pm with sharing of remembrances at 3pm, at Anderson Funeral Home, 2011 S. 4th St, DeKalb, IL 60115. Private interment will take place at Fairview Cemetery.
For information, visit www.AndersonFuneralHomeLtd.com or call 815-756-1022.