On Thursday night, friends and family gathered at the Butterfield Pavilion in Valparaiso to celebrate the life of one incredible man, Stuart Sweet. Organized by his longtime place of work, Chester Inc., the get-together allowed all those who knew Sweet to share memories, laughter, and a collective appreciation for the one they all loved.
“Stu was a long-time employee of Chester, Inc. He worked here for 32 years,” said Rich Shields of Chester, Inc. “He was actually getting ready to retire so we were going to celebrate his retirement, as well. So, after his passing, we decided to go ahead and do what is called a ‘Celebration of Life’ in lieu of just his retirement party.”
The night was made complete with food, live music, and socializing. At one end of the pavilion, a picture collage provided by Sweet's daughters, Nicole and Emile, captured wonderful moments of Sweet’s active and love-filled life. At the other end, some of his favorite books spanning various genres were offered in his memory. A basket of trivia cards also allowed guests to partake in one of Sweet’s favorite pastimes.
“My favorite memory of Stu was his knowledge of trivia,” Shields said. “We would pick out Trivial Pursuit questions every day at about three o’clock in the afternoon. He would get all the answers right, all the time. He had a lot of knowledge.”
“He was very witty, very well-rounded, very well-read,” said Lydia White in memory of Stu. “What really stood out was his intelligence. But another thing: he was always accepting of everyone. All through 2017 he wore a safety pin [that said] ‘I’m a safe place.’ And he truly was a safe place. Anybody could go to that man for anything and he would be there for them.”
After guests had greeted one another, some of Sweet’s closest friends, family members, and co-workers took some time to share what they loved most about this beloved man.
“We formed a group called Chester Reads a Book, and Stu was kind of a leader of that,” said Rick Pobell, a friend and co-worker of Sweet. “Every month we would read a book. We would meet at Stu’s house and discuss the book, and Stu would set the table and it would be somehow related to the book… if they smoked cigars in the book, we sat outside and smoked cigars.”
“We used to have a get-together on Halloween, one of his favorite holidays,” said Pete Peuquet, Owner of Chester, Inc. “He would have us all come in and dress in goofy outfits. I will always remember that. When that time of year came around, he was always excited. Maybe it was from his theater days, but those were good times.”
“When I first met Stu, at first I was a little intimidated,” said Heather Hitz, a friend of Sweet. “But what emerged for me was that I wasn’t intimidated by him and I wondered about that. Why was I not intimidated by him? Because I don’t have all of that [knowledge]. It must be the scholar in him and the teacher in him, that he could partake and share his knowledge without diminishing you. He would actually listen to what I had to share, what I was interested in. He remembered so many little details about me and my interests. And I think he did that with all of you.”
Martha Wehrenberg, Stu’s wife, then took the stage to express with many thanks to the Chester, Inc. community, her family, and her friends present at the celebration.
“I want to thank Chester [Inc.] very much for the evening and the support you showed Stu as he changed his career from a theatre professor, where he met a student [myself]. He said, ‘No more theatre professor life, how about construction?’” laughed Wehrenberg. “I also want to thank my four brothers, my sister, my cousins, my aunt, my family by choice, who have traveled a long way.”
Wehrenberg finished with a touching story of how Stu had the vibrant floral skirt she was wearing custom-made with some of his favorite African cloth.
“He contacted a woman in Washington, D.C. who sold African fabrics, and he sent her my waist measurement and height, chose the African boutique, and had it made for me. This was a Christmas present,” said Wehrenberg. “Most of you have read the essay I wrote about my husband’s life where I talk about the raspberry velvet shoes that he bought me that I opened three days after he died. The raspberry shoes match the skirt. That’s Stu. Thank you.”
The impact this man has had on people’s lives was more than apparent in the room that night. A lover of knowledge with a compassionate interest in others, Stuart Sweet made sure to leave a positive impact on all those who knew him, and he will be forever remembered.
