Walter Stanton Maloney Jr.

Walter Stanton (Stan) Maloney, Jr, age 88, of Decatur, Georgia, passed away peacefully on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at his home with family by his side. He was born on October 27, 1937, in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Walter Stanton Maloney and Marie Castles Maloney.

Stan grew up in Brookline where he developed a lifelong passion for all sports, both as a participant and as a spectator. He graduated from Fordham University with a degree in economics. At Fordham, he earned a varsity letter in sailing, and he appreciated the proximity of the school to Broadway where he continued to develop his love of musical theatre-an interest which remained life-long. After college, he served active duty as an Officer in the Airforce for 3 years followed by more than a decade as a reservist.

He met his wife of 61 years, Judith (Judy) Ann Leonard, playing bridge, something he continued to do at the Dekalb Senior Center even in the months before his illness. He earned his MBA at Northeastern University and began a career in corporate finance, ultimately, and not surprisingly, in the firm’s Marine Division.

Mid-career, he left his corporate job in favor of a career in education choosing a job as a college professor and Chairman of the Business Department at the University of New England. There, he made some of the best friends of his life-many of whom he was still in contact with even in the last few months of his life. These friends uniformly recalled him as one of the best friends they had ever had.

He spent most of retirement volunteering, generally in activities involving maritime history. He volunteered at the Maine Maritime Museum where he built wooden sailboats which were then auctioned off as a fundraiser for the Museum. When not volunteering, he enjoyed a few part time jobs as well including working in the shoe department at L.L. Bean and working in logistics for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He was equally grateful for all of these diverse experiences due to the ability to socialize and spend time with lots of different types of people with varied life experiences and backgrounds. One of his favorite memories of this time was sharing the helm of a wooden sailboat traveling through the maritimes where he and his co-captain, “successfully arrived at every port…and even on time!”

Most of all, he was a highly dedicated family man, almost desperate to participate in the lives of his children and grandchildren in whatever way he could. He enjoyed countless sporting events (including even at times as the coach), theatre and choir performances as well as Special Olympics. When he wasn’t able to attend, he always remembered to ask how things went and wanted all the details. He was passionate about the successes and challenges of his children and grandchildren and felt any related grief or loss deeply.

Later in his life, he and Judy, moved to Decatur, Georgia to be closer to his daughter and three of their grandchildren, one of whom has profound special needs. He was a fixture in his daughter’s home, meeting every Saturday, including the week before his illness, for coffee, and for all the updates on the children’s lives.

He is survived by his devoted wife, Judy; sister Suzanne Wadsworth, (Cohasset, MA); son Sean, (South Burlington, VT); daughter Heather (Decatur, GA); granddaughters, Myra, Autumn, Hanley, and Cora and nephew Nathaniel. He was preceded in death by his parents Walter Stanton Maloney and Marie (Castles) Maloney and by his nephew, Peter (Oakland, CA)-a loss he felt particularly deeply.

While we already miss him dearly, we are comforted by the knowledge that his suffering is no more and that he is on his way to paradise.

A funeral mass will be held on Monday, November 24, 2025, at 2pm at St. Thomas Moore Catholic Church, 636 West Ponce De Leon Ave, Decatur, GA. The family will be welcoming friends following the mass at his daughter’s home, 640 Clairemont Avenue, Decatur, GA.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Stan’s memory at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (www.choa.org), The Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta (www.dsaatl.org) or Special Olympics of Georgia (www.specialolympics.org/programs/united-states/georgia)