S. Stoney Simons ’42

S. Stoney Simons died Oct. 1, 2007, at the Foulkeways at Gwynedd, Pa., following a stroke. Stoney was born in Charleston, S.C. He prepared for Princeton at the Fountain Valley School. In college he played 150-pound football, was a member of the Undergraduate Council, and was president of Ivy Club.

After graduation, Stoney joined the Navy as a flight intelligence officer. He flew on numerous bombing missions, including one in which his plane crashed into the Pacific. Stoney and the rest of the crew were picked up by a destroyer after a crewman on that ship spotted them in the water — just in time. After six weeks convalescing in a hospital, he married Virginia Cooke and returned to the Pacific, only to be saved from further combat by the dropping of the atomic bomb.

After the war, Stoney worked in development and research for Smith, Kline & French. In 1968 he shifted to banking as a vice president of Western Savings Bank in Philadelphia, and in addition was affiliated with numerous nonprofit organizations.

Stoney was the quintessential Southern gentleman, soft-spoken and gracious. The class sends sympathy to Virginia; their sons, Stoney Jr. '67 and Richard '70; their daughters, Elizabeth Mittermiller, Ellen, and Anne; and 15 grandchildren.