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Kilmarnock

Councilman Joe Sliakis dies

by Lisa Hinton-Valdrighi
Stanley Joseph “Joe” Sliakis

WHITE STONE—The Town of White Stone lost one of its councilmen when Stanley Joseph “Joe” Sliakis died Saturday, January 28, at his home in White Stone. He was 82.

Sliakis was elected to council in May 2010 and re-elected in May 2014. He last attended a council meeting on December 1, 2016.

“Joe was a wise elder statesman,” said town manager Patrick Frere. “When he spoke everybody listened. He would remind everybody of what White Stone used to be and could be again.”

After working as a butcher for many years at Donaldson’s Grocery Store in White Stone, Sliakis bought the business.

“The passing of Joe is a great loss for our town and community. Not only did we lose a council member but I also lost a good friend,” said Mayor Randy Reeves. “He could look at White Stone’s past and also see the future. Joe was the type of person that you could sit down and discuss a problem with, disagree and still walk away as a friend. The town will deeply miss him.”

A graduate of White Stone High School, he played baseball for two years in the semi-pro Chesapeake League before joining the U.S. Air Force in 1954. He played on the Air Force All-Star team that placed second in the All-World, All-Service Baseball Tournament.

Sliakis was inducted into the Northern Neck Sports Wall of Fame in 2015 when he was recognized as a player, coach and umpire.

He was a catcher on the Kilmarnock Texacos fastpitch softball team for 10 years and coached girls softball for 12 years before volunteering as an umpire for the Lancaster County Little League and pony league.

A memorial service will be held to celebrate his life at 2 p.m. February 11 at the White Stone Volunteer Fire Department. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to WSVFD.

Sliakis is survived by his wife, Alice; two daughters, Anna Kellum and Melinda George, and their families.

An obituary will appear in the February 9 Rappahannock Record.

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