Town mourns an adopted son

By Jim Haley

Herald Writer

DARRINGTON — When they count casualties from the Vietnam War around here, they’ll be adding one to the list in the future.

A town-adopted son, a man who knew just about everybody in Darrington and everybody knew him, will be put to rest today.

Randy Stuart’s death certificate may eventually say that he died of a heart attack, but many local residents are convinced that the lingering effects from combat in Vietnam ultimately led to his demise.

He stood 6 foot 6 and weighted nearly 250 pounds. His hobbies were cutting firewood and helping the elderly. He was a town character.

"Everyone called him the gentle giant," said his sister, Judy Wagner of Darrington. "He was a 50-year-old man with the heart of a 3-year-old boy. He’d give you the shirt off his back to anybody."

Stuart, 52, died Nov. 16 in a King County hospital after suffering first from a logging accident, and then apparently from not being able to get the correct dosage of medication for a mental problem, Wagner said. He suffered from bipolar disorder (manic depression) and post-traumatic stress disorder, she said.

His artillery unit in Vietnam was struck by an enemy shell that wiped out just about everyone but him, Wagner said. Her brother didn’t talk about it much, but she attributed both mental illnesses to stress from his year’s service in the war.

He was fully on the mend from the logging accident, which he suffered while gathering firewood. Wagner is convinced it was the medication imbalance that did him in, although the family is still awaiting a death certificate and an autopsy report.

Born in Nebraska, he moved with his family to Darrington in 1963. Stuart was a 1967 graduate of Darrington High School. When he returned from the service, he lived with his parents and took care of them in their old age. He lived alone after his father died in 1998.

Stuart continued living in his dad’s trailer after his father died, despite the fact that the court is reserved for older residents.

Neighbor Odell Jones said he didn’t mind at all having the younger Stuart living alone next door.

"Randy was as good a neighbor as you would ever want to have around," Jones said, adding that whenever he needed help Stuart was there to lend a hand.

"He knew about everybody in town and they knew him," added Elmer Willis, another neighbor who laments his passing.

Darrington resident Sharon Allen said she could always count on Stuart to start her car, and it became a joke between them whenever she ran into him in town.

"Everyone dearly loved him," Allen said. "There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for anybody."

Stuart was a town fixture. He and his routine will be greatly missed.

He started each morning at the Red Top Tavern around 6 for coffee and to share a handful of cookies he’d bring, said the tavern’s Beverly Morgan.

"Everybody misses him," Morgan said. "That’s what he did. He was always visiting people."

There would be several stops at the Red Top each day for coffee, soda and some conversation. Maybe he’d buy a lottery or pulltab ticket, or even roll the dice with Morgan for "double or nothing on the coffee."

It gave him great pleasure when he beat her.

Then it would be off the post office, grocery stores, barber shop or restaurant to meet and greet his neighbors.

He lived off a Social Security disability income in later years, although he once worked at Summit Timber here and for the U.S. Forest Service.

Was his daily routine a little strange?

"He wasn’t strange to us," said Patty Wicken, who knew Stuart from her work at the post office. "That’s just the way he was."

Townspeople would worry about Stuart when he periodically showed symptoms of the post-traumatic stress disorder. Then they’d try to help him or call Wagner or his brother, Tom Stuart of Marysville.

"Everyone watched out for Randy when he wasn’t feeling well," said Darrington resident Michelle Vincent. "It was very sad when he would get confused. He’d go from a caring person to a frustrated person."

It’s the gentle, helpful side of him that the town will remember.

"There’s not much to say about Randy except he was a quiet and caring person," Vincent said. "He never bothered anybody, and he loved to cut firewood."

You can call Herald Writer Jim Haley at 425-339-3447

or send e-mail to haley@heraldnet.com.

Randy Stuart’s funeral service is scheduled for 1 p.m. today at the Assembly of God Church on Highway 530 in Darrington.

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