Alan Stone paired swans with Harbourside golf course

Alan Stone considered bringing ducks to the Harbourside golf course near his home. His neighbors protested.

Instead, he bought a pair of swans at a Lakeland auction and presented them to his wife, Beverly, as an anniversary gift in 1994. He transported them with help from neighbors.

The Stones named the male George after comedian George Burns and the female Gracie after Burns’ partner, Gracie Allen.

It was the beginning of Longboat Key’s swan family whose members have become the neighborhood mascots. Their progeny now includes four adult mated pairs, three of which still live on the Key, and a handful of new cygnets each spring. One of those pairs is named Alan and Beverly.

Stone, of Longboat Key and Chicago, died Oct. 25. He was 84.

He was a veteran of the Korean War who began his career as a salesperson for a children’s clothing store but wound up becoming a designer and wholesaler of children’s apparel.

According to Stone’s friend and neighbor, David Novak, who took on the role of caring for the swan family in 2007 after Gracie died of botulism, Stone saw a lot of himself in the swans.

“He wanted to create his own little place around here,” Novak said. “He loved the water and was a member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary — an avid fisherman, who loved going out on the water.”

Whenever he went fishing, he brought back fresh catches for his neighbors, according to Novak.
Temple Beth Israel Rabbi Jonathan Katz described Stone as “a peach of a man, very approachable and warm with a gentle sense of humor.”

Last week, Katz had planned to discuss peacocks and their significance in Yiddish literature at Friday night Shabbat services. That changed when he learned of Stone’s death that day.

“On a day devoted to the peacocks, of all things, I ended up switching birds and talking about swans,” Katz said.

Stone is survived by his wife, Beverly; sons Robert, Jeffrey and Joel; sister, Ruth Odza; and two grandchildren.

A service took place Oct. 27, in Wilmette, Ill. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Northwestern Memorial Foundation in support of Leukemia Research, 251 E. Huron St., Galter 3-200, Chicago, Ill., 60611; or Midwest Palliative and Hospice CareCenter, 2050 Claire Court, Glenview, Ill., 60025.

Contact Robin Hartill at [email protected]