BROOKLIN
Peter Albert Sturtevant died at his summer home on Oct. 9 in Brooklin. A resident of Sanibel, Fla., he was born on Sept. 5, 1930, in Washington, D.C., to William North Sturtevant and Elizabeth Wheeler Sturtevant Dunn. He lost his older brother, North, a Yale graduate and Navy flyer, in 1944. He attended St. Albans School in Washington and graduated from Choate. He later attended Harvard and Rollins Colleges (BA), George Washington Law School (JD) and the University of Vermont (MA).
Peter was an avid fly fisherman, bird hunter and sailor. A superb athlete, he pitched in the NCAA tournament for Rollins College and for the Single-A Cody Red Sox in Wyoming. He was a former commodore of Center Harbor Yacht Club in Brooklin, where he sailed his sloop, Cachalot, and a member of Chevy Chase Club in Maryland.
A beloved and revered teacher and educator, he retired as head of the Maret School in Washington, D.C., in 1994, after serving for 24 years. He led the school’s successful transition from a nearly bankrupt, relatively unknown institution to one of the most respected independent schools in the Washington area. He was passionate about developing the full intellectual, artistic and athletic potential of each student in his care. At Maret, he earned the moniker “Big Sky,” playfully bestowed upon him by colleagues and students who enjoyed his strong leadership and oversized personality. He was ever a champion for students and teachers, especially the underdog. He began his teaching career at the all-boys Landon School in Bethesda, Md., where he taught and coached from 1958-1966. He is revered by those men he taught as boys at Landon, as well as by his former Maret students and faculty.
Preceded in death by his wife, Janet Knox Sturtevant, he leaves his wife, Linda Webber Sturtevant. He is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth Sturtevant, and husband, John Eckhardt, of Battleground, Wash.; and three sons, William North Sturtevant III and wife, Carol, of Durham, N.H., Peter Albert Sturtevant Jr. and wife, Amy, of Washington, D.C., and Thomas Knox Sturtevant and partner Dianna Raedle of New York City. He also leaves his stepson, Phillip Wheeler Marriott, and wife, Susannah, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and stepdaughter Brooke Bartletta and husband, Simon Bartletta, of Hingham, Mass. In addition, he is survived by 17 grandchildren.
A service for Peter will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26, at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Blue Hill. The family requests that gifts in Peter’s memory be sent to the Brooklin Fire Department, P.O. Box 17, Brooklin, ME 04616.
Arrangements by Jordan-Fernald, 113 Franklin St., Ellsworth.
Condolences may be expressed at www.jordanfernald.com.