Fowler Penfield Stone of Aspen, Colorado, died on September 7, 2002, of
lymphoma and complications from cystic fibrosis. Pete attended Dartmouth for
two years where he was a member of the ski team and Kappa Sigma. He
transferred to the University of Utah and earned a degree in business
management. Pete started work with 3M in the Midwest; then wishing to get
back to the mountains, he took a job with Warner-Chilcott in Boulder,
Colorado. Pete dreamed of owning a ski lodge. In 1969 that dream came true
when he bought Prospector Lodge in Aspen, Colorado, which he ran for 14 years.
After selling the lodge he was proprietor of Airport Liquors but never missed a
good powder day. Pete was known as the oldest person with cystic fibrosis and
contributed to medical research. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Ruth,
two children, and two grandchildren.
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Pete left his home in tiny Mosinee, Wisconsin, having received a full
scholarship to Dartmouth College. Mosinee High School offered no language
studies, so he arrived at Dartmouth as one of only four students with no
language background. Pete struggled to keep up in his language classes but
became very ill toward the end of his first year and spent many weeks in the
infirmary with pneumonia and what would be diagnosed much later in life
as Cystic Fibrosis. At the end of that year Pete was asked if he thought he could
catch up with his work. He received his scholarship for a second year at
Dartmouth; but indeed, he could not recoup his losses and maintain the
necessary grade point average and didn't return for his junior year.
Once Pete and I went to Hanover and the College, where he showed me the
library, the Kappa Sigma house, the beautiful Orozco frescos and other places
precious to him.
Skiing took Pete to Salt Lake City where he met and married me, Ruthie
Dangerfield, in 1960, in the same week we were graduated from the U of
Utah. We raised two children, Todd and Melissa. Pete was an adoring
husband, dad and grandfather for more than 45 years.
Pete made many contributions in his life. He became known as the oldest patient
with Cystic Fibrosis, living until almost 68, more than twice the normal
expectancy. His and his sibling's blood studies were used to isolate the gene
causing the terrible disease. His doctors considered him "a miracle." Pete
kept his illness a secret and lived an athletic and healthy-appearing life. He was
an outstanding skier and golfer; he played baseball, rode bikes, hiked, sailed,
traveled widely and loved everything outdoors. People were shocked to learn at
his memorial service, that he suffered his entire life with CF. Now he has
become the only CF patient ever to die of cancer.
Ruth Stone
Pete's dream came true in 1969 when we moved to Aspen and purchased the
Prospector Lodge. Pete loved people and he loved Aspen. 1 had the pleasure
of meeting a few of you as guests in our lodge. Pete spoke highly of you. He
was the perfect host and ambassador for Aspen. He was also a leader, serving
on many boards, including the Aspen Music Festival and as president of the
Aspen Rotary Club where he started the foreign exchange program in
Aspen. As a family, we hosted more than a dozen exchange students. For the
last dozen years of his life, Pete was a volunteer "Ambassador" for the Aspen
Skiing Company, showing guests a good time skiing down the "Double Black
Diamond" trails of Aspen Mountain.
Pete believed strongly that he should put something back into the Aspen
community he loved. At his memorial service, people packed the church and
overflowed into the street, where a television and speaker system had to be set up.
The priest said it was the largest group of people ever to attend a memorial
service at Christ Episcopal Church, Aspen.
By Ruth Stone