Stuart Earle Danforth

Stuart Earle Danforth, age 95, of Tolland, Connecticut, passed away quietly in his sleep on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. He was born in Somersworth, New Hampshire, on February 2, 1930, to Lincoln Earle Danforth and Helen Mae (Kimball) Danforth.

Early on, Stuart’s family moved to Lewiston, Maine, where he graduated from high school in 1948. After graduation, he briefly attended college in Pullman, Washington, before enlisting in the U.S. Army for one year and serving in the Army Reserves for another six years. In the early 1950s, he moved to Connecticut to work in the insurance industry, where he met Barbara Kelton of Middlebury, Vermont. They were married on January 14, 1956. Over the years, Stu also worked selling printing and paper-handling equipment for various companies, including Pitney Bowes. He retired in 2000 and engaged in helping his wife run the Old Babcock Tavern Bed & Breakfast in Tolland.

He was a man of many interests and good humor. A golfer and avid skier, he was an early member of the Mount Laurel Ski Club of Hartford. Later, he became a certified National Ski Patrol member at Mt. Southington and competed in Giant Slalom racing with the 70+ Ski Club, winning gold medals until the age of 90. He was also involved with the founding of the Fox Hill ski slope at Henry Park in Rockville during the 1960s.

Stu was civic-minded and served as a town selectman in Tolland from 1966 to 1967. He was one of four gentlemen who founded "Citizens for Election Reform," an organization awarded recognition by the Connecticut General Assembly in 2005. Stu was also involved in the early formation of the volunteer Tolland Ambulance Service in the 1960s and Arts of Tolland. Additionally, Stu loved building stone walls, working on his 18th-century tavern, and camping on family land in Lincoln, Vermont. He will be missed.

He was predeceased by his beloved wife of 61 years, Barbara; his sister, Louise; and her husband, Ed Downing of Maine. He is survived by his two children: daughter, Karen Elaine Danforth and her husband Paul Zenaty of Hinesburg, Vermont; and son, Mark Edmund Danforth and life partner Brenda Marie Anderson of Tolland, Connecticut. He also leaves behind his brother-in-law, Howard Kelton and wife Linda of East Middlebury, Vermont, as well as many nieces and nephews throughout New England and elsewhere.

There will be no calling hours, and burial will be private. A memorial celebration may be held in the spring, to be determined at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please make a charitable contribution to the Tolland Volunteer Fire Department or a humanitarian organization of your choice.