Stanley Noyes Gaines

Born in Fayetteville, West Virginia, he was the youngest child of Ludwell Ebersole Gaines and Betty Chilton Gaines. His older siblings were Martha Gaines Wehrle, Ludwell Ebersole Gaines, Jr., George Chilton Gaines, and Ludwell Graham Gaines.

Stanley attended Lawrenceville School, the University of Virginia and the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.

He met Jacqueline Gay Hart while she was attending Sweetbriar College, and they were married in August of 1959. Together they raised four children, Stanley Noyes Gaines, Jr., Ralph Hart Gaines, Jacqueline Gaines Stitt, and Laura Gaines Semler.

Stanley served in the United States Army in Fort Knox, Kentucky followed by service in the Army Reserves.

Stanley’s distinguished career began at the Continental Can Company. He then sharpened his skills at Phillip Morris Inc., before joining Gould Inc., where he rose to the C-Suite. The pinnacle of his career was leading an investor group that purchased the industrial assets from Gould, Inc. He became the CEO of GNB, Inc. which grew to be the largest privately owned automotive and industrial standby power company in the world, before selling GNB to Pacific Dunlop of Australia.

He and Gay bought their first home in Palm Beach in 1989 and have made Palm Beach their residence ever since.

He was a generous supporter of the non-profit Students In Free Enterprise, SIFE whose mission is to empower higher education students to make a positive difference in their communities, while developing leadership and teamwork skills through the principals of free enterprise. He was deeply committed to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation in hopes of finding a cure for the disease his son Stanley Junior contracted as a child.

He was a strong supporter of conservative Republican candidates over many years, at the local, state and federal levels.

He was a member of The Everglades Club, The Bath & Tennis Club, and The Sailfish Club of Palm Beach, The Brook Club, The Racquet and Tennis Club of New York, and the Racquet Club of Chicago.

Above all else, Stanley believed that family was life’s greatest purpose and most enduring legacy.

He will be greatly missed by his friends and family, including his wife Gay of 66 years, his son Ralph, daughters Jacqueline and Laura, as well as his 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandsons.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Royal Poinciana Chapel, 60 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach, FL 33480. A memorial service will take place at The Royal Poinciana Chapel on June 12th at 3:00 p.m.