Margaret D. Aiken (Stone)

Margaret D. Aiken (Stone), a much-beloved artist, whose paintings have been widely shown in New York, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, the Grand Canyon and many other venues across the country, died in Sedona, Arizona on March 3, 2003. She was 78 years of age. Born in Las Cruces, New Mexico on April 3, 1924, Margaret could never remember not wanting to be an artist. In second grade, she writes, \u0027\u0027I discovered wildflowers, wild orange California poppies, blue morning glories. How they surprised me...\u0027\u0027 As a child, she moved from Las Cruces to El Pase to Nogales to Douglas and, finally, in the depression years, to Phoenix. It was there Margaret attended high school and, among other honors, became editor of the yearbook and salutatorian of her class. In 1945 she served in the Navy as a WAVE as NAS Santa Ana, CA. It was there that she met her first husband, Richard Aiken, a naval aviator. After the war, the couple moved to Greenwich Village, where all of their five sons were born, and later moved to Long Island where Margaret pursued a serious art career. She was also involved in environmental and historical preservation movements. In 1970 the family moved to Florida, where Margaret over the years became a creative force in the Ft. Lauderdale art world, as a painter, teacher and influential public citizen. Active in the Broward Art Council, she had many shows and earned a belated B.A. at Florida Atlantic University, as well as engaging in artistic adventures in Mexico, Europe, and the Grand Canyon. In 1985 Margaret married Wilfred Stone, an emeritus professor at Stanford and together they built a retirement home on Hornby Island, British Columbia. Here Margaret\u0027s creativity took off in many new directions and after some time in Italy and Greece in 1988, she wrote:\u0027\u0027I am now in a quiet place in my life where I am turning inward with my painting and printmaking.\u0027\u0027 Many shows followed. In 2003, after a long illness, she moved to Arizona to be close to her family. She remained throughout her life a person of strong faith and deep spirituality. She is survived by her husband, her sons, Richard, Bruce, William and Robert Aiken, as well as surviving siblings Alice Niles, Marian Lusby, and Hutch Davis. Brother Benjamin and son Charles preceded her in death. She will also be missed by five grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at Palo Cristi Presbyterian Church, 3535 East Lincoln Drive, Paradise Valley at 5:30 p.m. March 10th. A reception will follow. In lieu of flowers, contributions to her memory could be sent to the First Presbyterian Church, Palo Alto, 1140 Cowper St., Palo Alto, CA 94306. Westcott Funeral Home, Cottonwood, AZ assisted with arrangements.