Stanley was born on August 12, 1953 to James and Verlene Wallace. As a boy he was active in Boy Scouts and earned his Eagle Scout Badge. He graduated from Reidland High School in 1971. As a young man he apprenticed with his father and uncles in the home building business. He married his High School Sweetheart, Carole Harned and they had two sons, Daniel and Jason. He joined the US Coast Guard in 1974 at the age of Twenty and had a twenty-four-year career serving on the rivers and at sea, climbing through the ranks to Senior Chief. Carol would later get cancer, and he submitted retirement papers in order to bring her back to their hometown of Paducah. Following her death, he worked on the river as a tugboat pilot, a surveyor for the Army Corp of Engineers, and lastly for West Kentucky Community and Technical College as the developer and instructor in their Nautical Science program. He was a member of First Baptist Church in Paducah. He was blessed to marry again to Beverly O’Nan and joined their two families for twenty-five years.
He was preceded in death by his father, James Kendrick Wallace; first wife, Carole Wallace; grandson, Zach Helm.
He is survived by his wife, Beverly Wallace; mother, Verlene Wallace; sons, Daniel (Rachel) Wallace, Jason Wallace and Casey O’Nan; daughter, Valerie (Chad) Helm; sisters, Lois Wallace and Peggy (Ron) Chaves; grandchildren, Madeline Wallace, Katherine Wallace, Alec Wallace, Alex (Lauren) Helm and Alexis (Logan) Utley, Brooklyn O’Nan and River O’Nan, Madalyn Deweese; great-grandchildren, Averee Helm, Marlee Utley, Landreee Utley, Collins Utley, Linlee Helm and Berkley Helm; niece, Leah Chaves; nephew, Jacob Chaves, step-mother, Marlene Wallace, as well as aunts, uncles and several cousins.
Funeral services will begin at 2:00 PM on Sunday, September 7, 2025 at Hughes Funeral Home in Paducah with Tommy Tucker and Brian Arnold officiating. Burial will follow at Salem Cemetery.
Visitation will be held from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm on Sunday at the funeral home.
Expressions of sympathy may take the form of contributions made to National Coast Guard Museum Assoc., 125 Eugene O’Neill Drive, Suite 311, New London, CT 06320 or First Baptist Church, 2800 Broadway, Paducah, KY 42001 or The Gideons International, Paducah South Camp, PO Box 3232, Paducah, KY 42002-3232.
You may leave a message of sympathy or light a memorial candle at www.hughesfuneral.com.
Hughes Funeral Home of Paducah is in charge of arrangements.
