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closeFaithful resident says he became a part of Sumner
Roxanne Cooke
Stan Purvis can’t explain why he’ll never leave Sumner. He just knows he became a part of the town long ago.
“Sumner was very important to me,” he said. “I wouldn’t even consider living any place else.”
Purvis, 83, has lived in the same home on Maple Street with his wife Cecilia for almost 48 years. His parents grew up in the area after his grandparents settled in Sumner in 1886.
At the time, Sumner wasn’t officially incorporated, and alcohol was prohibited, Purvis said. And since his grandparents were teetotalers, they figured it would be an ideal location to raise children.
One of their sons, Albert, went on to work at Fleischmann’s Yeast Plant and also served on the Sumner City Council in the 1920s. He married a woman named Laura Sanderson, and Purvis was born on Oct. 17, 1924.
Purvis and his two sisters were born at Puyallup Valley Hospital. It was uncommon to be born in a hospital during that time, he said, but his mother was a nurse and worked for a prestigious Sumner doctor who wanted to make sure she had the best care possible.
The new family lived in different areas of Sumner when Purvis and his sisters were growing up, including “Sumner Heights,” which is now Edgewood. Purvis graduated from Sumner High School in 1942, and then went into the United States Army to do field artillery in 1944. He was discharged in 1945 after injuring his back in a training activity, he said, and never went abroad.
A couple years later, he met his future wife, who was a widow and had two daughters. She lived next door to one of Purvis’ cousins, so they were introduced.
“Being a singular guy, having a ready-made family like that was more than I could comprehend,” he said.
Purvis wasn’t interested in marriage at first, he said, but soon realized he would never meet another woman like Cecilia. The two married in 1953 and had a child of their own named Julie. She was born in 1967.
“We married and have been very happy,” he said.
But before Julie was born, the two ran a chicken farming business in the Edgewood area for a number of years. When that was no longer viable, they moved to their current home in Sumner in 1960, and Purvis worked as the operating engineer for a Tacoma company that supplied heat to downtown businesses. He also managed apartments with Cecilia.
In 1969, there was a vacancy on the city council, and he was encouraged to take over. He served until 1983.
Council dealt with some of the same problems it does today, including road repairs and finances — but growth and traffic were not the issues they are today, Purvis said.
“We didn’t have the growth problems we have now,” he said.
Still, Purvis is recognized for his work on the council and for his role in starting the Sumner Historical Society, said current Councilman Leroy Goff, who has known Purvis for so long that he can’t remember when they met.
“I’ve known him for so bloody long,” said Goff, who is also on the board of the Sumner Historical Society. “He’s just a gentleman and a great guy. He’s a Sumner boy.”
Despite the changes Sumner has seen, Purvis believes Sumner has retained its small-town character. And even though many of the people he knew growing up have passed away, the people in Sumner now are not too different.
“Most people treat each other good,” he said. “I like everybody. I’m very happy with the way the city’s being run, and I’m still glad I’m a resident of Sumner.
“I hope I live here the rest of my life,” he said.