Monsignor William Sherald Stone, 85, of The Dalles, and a former Baker City resident, died Oct. 15, 2001, at his home.
Office of the Dead will be held Sunday at 7 p.m. and Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m. Monday. Both services will be at St. Peter Catholic Church in The Dalles.
Interment will follow at The Dalles St. Peter Catholic Cemetery. Arrangements are under the care of Spencer, Libby & Powell Funeral Home.
Monsignor Stone was born April 28, 1916, at Athena, the sixth of seven children of Dr. Alvin Bernard and Gertrude Ann (Burnham) Stone. He grew up in The Dalles, where he attended St. Mary’s Academy. After two years at the University of Portland, he entered St. Edward’s Seminary and completed philosophical and theological studies there. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 15, 1943.
After ordination he served as assistant pastor for four years at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral in Baker City, and three years at Klamath Falls. He studied for one year at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., for post-graduate studies in education, receiving a master of arts degree.
After 20 months as pastor at Dufur, he was assigned to the chancery office to assist Father Geis in the archives, and to teach at St. Francis Academy. In the summer of 1953 he became pastor at Chiloquin. In January 1955 he became the first resident pastor of St. Patrick Church in Madras, where he remained until October 1961. He then became pastor at Milton-Freewater, with his birthplace, Athena, as one of his missions.
In June 1969 Monsignor Stone was transferred to Redmond. An assignment to Lakeview was terminated after six weeks, after which he was transferred to the pastorate of St. Peter Church in The Dalles, where he replaced Monsignor McMahon, who had resigned because of illness in July 1972. He moved to the Dufur parish in 1981, then retired in 1983.
He served as Diocesan Superintendent of Schools from 1949 to 1962, from 1973 to 1977 and for an additional three years on a part-time basis after the chancery office moved to Bend. He was named a Prelate of Honor with the title of Monsignor in 1980. He retired to Redmond, and then moved back to The Dalles in 1999.
In 1994 Monsignor Stone received the Bishop Francis P. Leipzig Award from the Archdiocese Historical Commission of Oregon. He authored the historical book, “The Cross in the Middle of Nowhere: The History of the Catholic Church in Eastern Oregon.”
He is survived by his sister, Genevieve Gutfleisch, and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Alvin and Gertrude Stone; his sister, Sister Naadene Ann; and his brothers, Gail, Kenneth, Rolland and Ralph.
Contributions in Monsignor Stone’s memory may be made to the Msgr. William Stone Scholarship Fund at St. Mary’s Academy, 1112 Cherry Heights Road, The Dalles, OR 97058.
Used with permission from: The Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, October 19, 2001
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor