Frederick Grant Stockton 1918 - 2019

 Frederick Grant Stockton passed away Christmas Day.  Born May 14, 1918, in McLean, Texas, he was 101 years old.

His father was one of the first Nazarene ministers in Oklahoma.  As his father transferred from church to church, the family moved every two or three years. His early years are chronicled in a book he authored, “A Nomadic Childhood.”

Grant was the oldest and last living member of his immediate family.  His sisters introduced him to the love of his life, Alice Lillian Little. They were married on June 3, 1941. He served in WWII in both the Army Air Corps as a pilot trainee, and in the Navy as an air navigator.  After the war, he and Alice, with their first child, moved to the East Bay Area of California where, while working full time, he built his growing family a house, mostly by himself. He and Alice raised three sons, all of whom are married, Alan (Karen), Robert (Jamie), and Glenn (Lori). He had six grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Adams State College in Colorado. His career was with Shell Development Company. Beginning work as a lab assistant, he became an early computer programmer, working with key-punched computing cards, in the 1950s. Beyond his work, he always had an intense interest and inquisitiveness in all things scientific.  In 1971, Shell transferred him to Houston, Texas, and he retired in the mid-1970s. He and Alice then moved to McMinnville, Oregon, ultimately residing for many years at Hillside Communities. During retirement, he worked for several companies, including Intel.

Throughout his life, Grant was so very sensitive to others’ needs, providing tangible help, thoughtful advice and financial assistance. He very much enjoyed puzzles and games of various kinds and shared his joy in them with others. While he was stationed briefly in Japan after the war, he encountered the game Go, which became an abiding interest for much of his life.
Alice and Grant celebrated 64 years of marriage before Alice died at the age of 88 in June of 2005. Several years following her passing, he moved to Bremerton, Washington. He was always an avid reader and wordsmith.  In recent years, he listened to audiobooks on his Echo. He loved poetry and committed many of his favorite poems to memory.

Grant will be greatly missed by his sons, their families, and his surviving relatives and friends.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Caregivers’ Fund at The Arbor at Bremerton.  To do so, call (360) 525-9000.