Amherst, Stanley Peter Ziomek, 92, a life-long resident of Amherst passed away peacefully at his home on July 6, 2016, surrounded by his family. 

The son of Michael and Anna (Szymanski) Ziomek, Stan was born on June 26, 1924, and raised on the family farm with his brothers Joseph, Henry, and Casmir, and his sisters Sophie, and Polly, all of whom predeceased him. He graduated from Amherst High School in 1942 and attended the Stockbridge School, where he pursued coursework in dairy farming and a goal of entering the ice cream manufacturing business.  While his career eventually took him in other directions, he never lost his love of ice cream, particularly more than one scoop and especially when accompanied by apple pie. 

In 1957, he married the former Beverly Giles of Sudbury, who survives him, and together they raised six sons: Peter, Mark, David, Dan, Andrew and John, who, in time, married their respective spouses Megin, Gary, Maria, Emily, Sherri, and Jen.  A son, Christopher, predeceased him.  A firm believer that you should always give to your community more than you expect in return, Stan was proud of each of his sons as they chose their career paths and devoted many hours to their own communities, coached or supported youth sports teams and outdoor recreation, or pursued careers in public service.  Stan was also the proud grandfather of the next generation of Ziomeks, ten grandchildren, and he enjoyed hearing about or watching their achievements in and outside of the classroom.

After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II, Stan was employed by the Town of Amherst for over forty years before his retirement in 1992; at various times serving as Supervisor of Recreation and Park Maintenance, Superintendent of Highways and for most of his career as Superintendent of Public Works and Tree Warden.  He also served as Assistant and Acting Town Manager.  A strong advocate for the construction of the town’s two swimming pools and several recreation areas, he also served on several school-building committees in Amherst.  For many years, Stan was a regular participant in Amherst town meeting and as a supporter of that form of government, followed each session closely as recently as May of this year.  

He was a longtime member and in some cases past president of a variety of professional organizations, including the Tri-County Highway Association, the American Public Works Association, the Massachusetts Highway Association, the New England Water Works Association, and the New England Park Association. 

Stan devoted more than sixty years to amateur sports in Amherst. He was one of the original organizers of the Amherst Legion Baseball Program, formed in 1948.  In 1952, he helped organize the Amherst Little League, and the following year did the same for the Amherst Babe Ruth League.  He was for many years, ending in 2012, the President of the Amherst Baseball League, and was the first in Western Massachusetts to make the leagues coed in the 1950s.  He had an extraordinary recall for the names of players, coaches, teams, and scores extending back to the early years of the league and in the course of his career, he was a positive influence on thousands of Amherst boys and girls.  He served as the Massachusetts State Director of the Babe Ruth League, directed the New England Regional for seven years during the 1960s, and was a member of that League’s Board of Directors for fifteen years.  He served as President of Babe Ruth League Baseball in 1968 and 1969, and in 2011, he was inducted into the Babe Ruth League Hall of Fame.  Even in his later years, Stan was a regular presence at youth baseball games in Amherst and Western Massachusetts, particularly seated in a lawn chair behind the backstop at games on the field that now bears his name.  It goes without saying that Stan was a lifelong Red Sox fan and that he was relieved to see “The Curse” broken in his lifetime.  

In addition to his involvement with baseball, Stan was a charter member of the Hampshire-Franklin Boards of Basketball Officials and Baseball Umpires and was a basketball official for over 25 years at the high school and college levels.  For many years, he was a familiar figure at the scoring table at the University of Massachusetts men’s basketball games.  

Stan was a dedicated member of the Rotary Club of Amherst where he served on a number of fund-raising committees and activities, including the annual community fair.  Among Rotary members, Stan was legendary in his role as Sergeant-at-Arms, where he utilized his office to raise additional funds from members through the levying of fines for tardiness or missed meetings, mentions in the news, and other minor misdemeanors.  His dedication to the town and community service in general resulted in numerous awards and recognition, and he was particularly proud of an award from the Amherst Recreation Commission that recognized his “long perseverance in pursuit of a vision of excellence in recreational opportunities for all of our citizens—past, present, and future.” 

In one of his last interviews, Stan said that he wanted to be remembered as a “hard working Amherst townie who had the town’s best interests in mind.”   

A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 am Monday, July 11, 2016 at St. Brigid’s Church, Amherst. Burial will follow in North Amherst Cemetery. Calling hours will be Sunday July 10, from 4:00 – 8:00 pm at the Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst.  

In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to remember Stan may do so through a charitable contribution in his name to the Amherst Baseball Leagues (PO Box 3501 Amherst, Massachusetts 01004) or the Rotary Club of Amherst (PO Box 542 Amherst, MA 01004)