James Edward Stant Jr.

A Life Well Lived

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and uncle, James Edward Stant, Jr.

James (Jim), 85, of Oceanside, California, passed away peacefully on June 14, 2022 surrounded by his family.

He was raised in Washington, D.C., a city in which he served as a carrier-salesman for The Washington Daily News at the age of 11, as a bat boy for the Washington Senators, and as a ball boy for the Washington Redskins, a team he cheered for throughout his life. He attended and graduated from Mackin High School and earned a reputation as a very skilled high school baseball and basketball player (All Prep), one who was often mentioned in the local news.

Upon graduation from high school, James enlisted in the United States Marine Corps where, after completing bootcamp at Parris Island, South Carolina, he proudly served his country for 20+ years while advancing through the ranks from private to his retirement rank of Captain.

His service included: postings at American consulates in Geneva, Switzerland and Frankfurt, Germany; a temporary posting at the American Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands; attendance at the Defense Language Institute (where he learned several languages); several deployments in Vietnam; and, several postings at both MCB Camp Pendleton and MCAS El Toro, the latter of which was his last duty station before retiring.

During his military career he further demonstrated his love of and skill in sports, playing on several USMC baseball and basketball teams at various duty stations and winning awards for his contributions.

James earned numerous military decorations/medals/badges/commendations/citations and campaign ribbons, including: Pistol Sharpshooter, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, and Vietnam Meritorious Unit Commendation Civil Action Colors.

Additionally, he was twice awarded Best News Photograph at the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association’s Distinguished Performance Awards events (1974, 1975).

Prior to his retirement from the military and while serving as the 1st Marine Division Photographic Officer, James attended Chapman College, graduating Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in History and receiving the Gray Key Award. This was followed by attendance at The University of San Diego and his earning two additional degrees, a Masters of Administration and a Masters of Education.

Upon retiring from The United States Marine Corps, Jim taught high school English as a Second Language (ESL) courses, Spanish, and a variety of history and government classes at Oceanside High School (15 years) and El Camino High School (14 years). He also coached girls basketball at both schools as well as at The Bishops School, San Dieguito Academy, Mission Vista High School, Fallbrook High School and Tri City Christian. In both his classrooms and on the court he was known for his focus on ‘attitude’ and his sharp attire.

After retiring from teaching at El Camino High School, he was recruited to be the conference commissioner for the North County Conference, a position which he very much enjoyed and held until his final career retirement in 2020.

Jim loved to travel! He was fortunate to travel extensively while serving as a U.S. Marine and he loved traveling with his wife, Elaine, to places like Alaska and Portugal, and with his wife and daughters to places such as Hawaii and Jamaica.

He was a long-time lover of BMWs (we can’t even count how many he owned!), a lifelong fan of both basketball and football, and he was the most proud of his service as a U.S. Marine - the Few, the Proud, the Marines.

We’ll miss traveling with him, and his sharing of the latest news or team scores, his humor, his smile and, most of all, hearing him say, “I Love You.”

James was preceded in death by his father, James Edward Stant, Sr.; his mother, Mary Charlotte (Donahue) Stant; his brother, Ronald Paul Stant; his sisters, Barbara Ann (Stant) Taylor and Mary Catherine Stant; a sister-in-law, Carol Stant; a brother-in-law, Charles Taylor; a niece, Kimberly Taylor; and a nephew, Chris Taylor.

He is survived by his wife, Margaret E. (Kleeman, Rodriguez) Stant; daughters, Stephanie (Stant, Verespej) Hackney, Melissa (Rodriguez) Leisure and Tracy (Rodriguez) Tarlos; a son, Eric Rodriguez; a daughter-in-law, Cara (Burley) Rodriguez; a son-in-law, Douglas Hackney; and former sons-in-law Joseph Verespej and Rick Tarlos; grandchildren, Chari Verespej, Shaun Verespej, Lindsay Leisure, Madison Tarlos, Ryan Tarlos, Fiona Rodriguez and Sofia Rodriguez; niece, Cheryl (Taylor) Teller; nephews, Patrick Taylor, Danny Taylor and Tracy Stant; and his beloved dog Katy.

James will be buried, with full military honors, at Miramar National Cemetery at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, July 12, 2022. The address is 5795 Nobel Drive, San Diego, CA 92122 – (858) 658-7360.

***Please note that the service starts promptly at 9:30a.m. - all who attend are asked to enter the cemetery no later than 9:00 a.m.***

In lieu of flowers we invite you to make a donation to the Boys & Girls Club, an organization that funded a life-changing, childhood surgery for Jim, and an organization which held a special place in his heart. Alternatively, donations can be made to Toys for Tots, an organization that supports children of military service members.