Walter Scott "Scotty" StonefieldWalter Scott "Scotty" Stonefield, a former Oldham area resident died Friday, December 23, 2016 in Sioux Falls, two weeks after his 100th birthday.Scotty was born on December 9, 1916, to Walter Irad and Phoebe Augusta (Becker) Stonefield, at the family farm in Oldham, SD. He was the second of their three children. His parents ran a dairy and he grew up delivering milk in Oldham. He enjoyed his childhood and later in life he often talked of his mother as having been his best friend.He graduated in 1934 from Oldham High School and in 1938 from Mankato State Teachers College, Mankato, MN with a B.E. Degree in History and Geography and a minor in English. He was the first person in his family to graduate from college. He loved his college days, especially being editor of the student newspaper "The College Reporter" for a year.After college, he taught in Fulda, MN. from 1938 to 1941. He moved to Los Angeles, CA in 1941 to work at Firestone as an office manager. He was living there in 1941 when Pearl Harbor, HI. was attacked and the US entered World War II. In 1942 he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force. He served in the war in the Pacific from Nov. 3, 1942 to Sept. 9, 1945. He worked as an aerial photopo in the 955th Engineer Topographic Co. They edited all the maps, charts and layouts as the company moved from the southern islands to the Philippines. The war ended before they reached Japan.Scotty returned to Oldham in the fall of 1945. He served as principal at Willow Lake High School and as a teacher in Brookings. Using his military service money he bought a farm near Oldham. He met Maurine Leighton of Rutland, SD at Willow Lake. They were married on December 31, 1949. They farmed at Oldham for over 35 years. He was also a rural mail carrier out of Oldham and Brookings from 1965 until 1979. He and Maurine retired from farming in 1987.In 1966 the family, which now included four children, moved from the farm south and west of Oldham to his grand-parents home in Oldham. He had lived there earlier in his life and now lived there again for the next 44 years. This house has been in the family since 1906.He also served as chairman of the Kingsbury County School Board in the 1960"s. He was a lifetime member of the American Legion, V.F.W. and Oldham Lutheran Church.After Maurine's death in 2005, he lived in their home until moving to the Inn on Westport in Sioux Falls in 2011. He drove cars and tractors and lived on his own until the age of 94. He collected coins and toy tractors. He loved history and was a reader to the end of his life. The last years of his life were brightened by his friendship with Betty Freede, a Westport resident and by the care and assistance he received from the Westport staff. On December 9, 2016 he celebrated his 100th birthday, with a wonderful party. He passed away from heart failure at Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls. His four children and other family were with him.Scotty is survived by his children: Mary (Dean) Johnson, Nancy (James) Carmody, Michael Stonefield and Susan (Larry) Malenke; grandchildren: Kristen Johnson, Kara Carmody, (Matt Vinez), Erin (Joe) Riedel, Corey (Jessica) Stonefield, Ashley Dolly and Rebecca Steiner; great-grandchildren: Kelly (Adam) Jungers, Amy Vardsveen, Michael Vardsveen, Cormac Vinez, Eliza Riedel, Isaac Stonefield and Nolan Stonefield.Other survivors are his brothers-in-law, Hart Erickson and Bob Foster; sisters-in-law, Dolly Uthe, LaVetta Foster, Delores Leighton and Sandy Leighton and numerous nieces and nephews. Scotty was preceded in death by his wife Maurine, his parents, Walter in 1951 and Phoebe in 1964, his sister Dorothy Booen in 1974 and his brother Richard Stonefield in 2007. Also by his parents-in-law Orlando and Bernice Leighton, brothers-in-law Shirley Booen, Donnie Leighton, Larry Leighton, Adrian Ingemansen and Bill Uthe, sisters-in-law, Lucille Stonefield, Ruth Erickson, Jean Ingemansen and Beverly Leighton and nephew Paul Stonefield.One hundred remarkable years. A memorial and remembrance service will be held at a later date. Johnson-Henry Funeral Home in Arlington, SD has charge of arrangements.