BVU Patch Soars with Pilot Ben Stone
Reminders of his alma mater and experiences that expanded his horizons accompany pilot Ben Stone around the world.
U.S. Air Force Reserve 1st Lt. Ben Stone carries a proud piece of his past with him around the world as he co-pilots KC-135s, the giant aerial refueling crafts. Stone carries a BVU tennis cap with him, a tangible reminder of his playing days for the Beavers.
And down his left sleeve, there’s a blue BVU patch, a constant presence for the place that put him on the pathway to earning his wings.
“Being a pilot, you have the best office in the world,” says Stone, a 2011 BVU graduate. “Flying has always been a passion of mine. Getting to fly as a career is wonderful. I love what I do.”
Stone was grounded for a few days recently in Honolulu, Hawaii, not the worst place for a layover. He passed part of a morning talking up his alma mater as a maintenance crew examined the jet.
“I appreciated the many opportunities we had to get involved. BVU helped shape me and I look forward to supporting it in any way I can.”
Ben Stone '11
“I worked campus security with Mark Kirkholm my first two years and really enjoyed it,” Stone says. “I was an RA as a junior, and a head resident as a senior. I was in A.W.O.L. (Alternative Week of Learning) all four years and had great spring break working experiences through A.W.O.L. in Jamaica, Puerto Rico, the Florida Everglades, and the Dominican Republic.”
Those service opportunities gave Stone an appreciation for his blessings while opening vistas for him across the world.
“We met a child at an orphanage in Jamaica and he was bedridden with tumors,” Stone says, growing serious. “Two months later we received an email that the boy had died. The vigor he had for life even while on his deathbed changed me. I’ll never forget it.”
The communications studies major returned to his home state of Illinois following graduation. He worked for State Farm Insurance, then coached tennis at Illinois Wesleyan University. Try as he might, he was unsuccessful in scheduling a match against his alma mater in men’s tennis.
“If I would have been there one more year, I think I would have gotten BVU on the schedule,” he says.
BVU tennis, after all, helped bring Stone to the campus in Storm Lake. He loved everything about representing the Beavers on the court and still dons his competition cap almost daily.
How the Bloomington, Ill., native learned of BVU involves yet another story. Adrienne Haynes ‘10, an attorney and community leader in Kansas City, Mo., lived in Bloomington before moving to Iowa just prior to college. She was attending BVU and had the opportunity to sell Stone on its virtues.
“Adrienne told me about the awesome school in Storm Lake, Iowa, she was attending,” Stone remembers. “She told me I could play tennis for the Beavers.”
Stone spent four years doing just that, often penciled in at the No. 2 singles spot, and the No. 1 doubles team. He served as team captain in 2010-11. He was also named Student Leader of the Year at BVU in 2010.
“I appreciated the many opportunities we had to get involved,” he says, citing AWOL, men’s tennis, Student Activities Board, Campus Ministry, and more. “BVU helped shape me and I look forward to supporting it in any way I can.”
On lots of days, that support shows in a proud BVU patch soaring at 32,000 feet with 1st Lt. Ben Stone, a Beaver through and through.