Robert A. Stansell; Retired Accountant

Longtime Santa Paula resident Robert A. Stansell died Sunday. He was 75.

Stansell was born March 25, 1923, in Coldwater, Mich. He was drafted into the Marines during World War II and also served in the Army as a chaplain’s assistant for the 37th Field Hospital in the Philippines, his family said.

Between 1954 and 1956, Stansell was a police officer for the Coldwater Police Department before he resigned to start a bookkeeping career that allowed him to spend more time with his children, according to his family.

In 1964, Stansell moved his family to Canoga Park to live near relatives.

Three years later, the Stansell family moved to Simi Valley. In 1971, he resettled in Santa Paula. The accountant retired from Western Exterminators in 1995.

Stansell was a longtime member of the First Presbyterian Church in Santa Paula. He was a Mason for 53 years, most recently as a member at Santa Paula/Fillmore Chapter No. 291.

One of Stansell’s favorite pastimes was dining with his close friend, Lois Keast, of Saticoy, at the Familia Diaz restaurant, a historic landmark in Santa Paula that opened in 1936, said Stansell’s son, Dennis Stansell, of Simi Valley.

“I used to come up and take the two of them to dinner at least once a week,” Dennis Stansell said.

Before his health began failing in 1995, Stansell was an avid square dancer. He read books about historic events and enjoyed learning about the American painter Norman Rockwell.

“He liked reminiscing about old times and how much simpler life was then,” said his son.

Stansell was preceded in death by his brother, Carl Stansell, of North Carolina.

In addition to his son Dennis, Stansell is survived by a daughter, Penne Naas , of Sugar Island, Mich.; two other sons, Keith Stansell, of Dallas, Pa.; and Jeffrey Stansell, of South Gate in Los Angeles County; eight grandchildren, and one great granddaughter.

A visitation will be today from noon to 8 p.m. at Pierce Brothers Stetler Chapel in Santa Paula. A memorial service is planned at 11 a.m. Friday, also at Pierce Brothers.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions be made to Caregivers of Santa Paula, a nonprofit group that sends volunteer helpers into aged people’s homes.