Vito Stanley, 80, of Edgecomb and Rockport, died April 3 at MidCoast Hospital in Brunswick following a brief illness. He was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada on July 18, 1925, the son of Adamus and Barbara Stanislovaitis. He grew up in Detroit, Mich. Stanley joined the Navy at the age of 17 and served as a gunner’s mate and fire control technician. During his career he served in the Mediterranean, Guadalcanal in the Pacific and was on the island of Hokkaido in Japan in 1945. He was commissioned in 1960. When he retired from the Navy in 1965, he received a picture of the Japanese surrender on the USS Missouri from fleet admiral Chester W. Nimitz. Along with the picture Nimitz sent Stanley a hand written note which said, "To Lieutenant J.G. Vito Stanley, USN, With best wishes and great appreciation of your contribution to the war effort that made possible the above scene." Stanley was a world traveler. He enjoyed trips to Trinidad, Brazil, Russia, Turkey, Poland, China, Estonia, Norway, Holland, Latvia and the Czech Republic. He often traveled to Lithuania where he owned a family farm. He maintained dual citizenship there and spoke fluent Lithuanian and some Russian. He married Barbara Reed in 1958. They lived in Cuba, California and Michigan before finally settling in Edgecomb, in 1977. He loved the outdoors. He worked continuously tending his flower and vegetable gardens, and fruit trees, and refused to let a dandelion grow on his park-like lawn. His gladiola and dahlia beds drew the attention of all that traveled the River Road. He was known for his generosity in giving away his flowers and vegetables. On May 15, 2003 he married Maxine Fish-Dinsmore. Vito was predeceased by his wife Barbara on June 19, 2002. He is survived by his wife Maxine; former mother-in-law, Vuela Reed; sister, Bertha Lavisky; daughter, Victoria Bishop and husband Marty and son Joshua; son, Peter Stanley and wife Sara and daughters, Jenna and Alex; daughters, Catherine Pendergast and husband Paul, and Elizabeth and sons, Christopher and Nicholas; and his beloved dog Pepper. Family and friends are invited to a celebration of his life 12-3 p.m., Sat., April 29 at the family’s home at 385 River Rd. Donations in his memory may be made to the Lincoln County Animal Shelter P.O. Box 7, Edgecomb, ME 04556.
