Lifetime Service

Stanley Caulkins, originally born in Maine and one of four brothers moved with his family to Virginia in 1937. His father, a Baptist minister, soon found his calling ministering to the Leesburg Baptist Church.

A 1943 graduate of Leesburg High School, Stanley enlisted to serve his county in World War II, joining the U.S. Army Air Corps at 17. He was eventually deployed to the European theater as a radioman and waist gunner for the fabled B-17 bomber, where he witnessed the horrific destruction of the war while flying missions across western Europe.

Following the war, he enrolled at the Peters School of Horology on the G. I. Bill to become a watchmaker. After school, Stanley worked as a watchmaker in Leesburg for several years before buying the old Flippo Brothers Grocery Store and establishing his own jewelry shop, Caulkins Jewelers, which he still runs to this day with his brother Roger.

Caulkins Jewelers, a true family business, has served Loudoun from the same location for over half a century, and Stanley has served as a volunteer or officer or both for countless civic and non-profit organizations over that time.

Working with Leesburg’s Town Council, famed entertainer Arthur Godfrey, the FAA and the State of Virginia, Caulkins and a group of dedicated individuals were instrumental in the successful founding of the Leesburg Executive Airport.

The airport’s main terminal was dedicated in his honor in 2004.

He’s served as quartermaster of the Leesburg VFW, secretary of the Izaak Walton League, treasurer of the local Boy Scouts, helped found the Blue Ridge Speech and Hearing Center, and has been a timeless contributor to countless other organizations centered on service to the community.

A winner of numerous awards, including being named Loudoun’s Citizen of the Year by the Loudoun Times-Mirror in 1992, Caulkins’ belief that a commitment to one’s community is the thing that keeps you there has been a driving force throughout his life.

“Whatever I am is because I love my town, I love my county, I love my state, and my people. We’re knit together. It’s just a pleasure to be part of the community.”

We lost Stanley in 2018.

View his video below.