Stuart Patterson Durst, Jr., 63, a resident of Washington, DC passed away on November 7, 2021.

Born on April 15, 1958  he was the son of  Anna Lee (Clark) Durst and the late Stuart P. Durst, Sr. of Keyser, WV.

Surviving in addition to his mother, are his wife, Julie Ann Ward, and his children Stuart Raymond and Abigail “Abbey” Anna of Washington, DC ; and his sister, Kelley Durst (Jeff Guinness) of Decatur, GA.  Stuart is also survived by his mother and father in-law, Esther and Raymond Smith of Beal City MI; brother-in-law’s  Jerry Ward (Julie); Jeff Ward; John Ward and Jason Smith (Tammy) and nieces Haley Ward, Sydney Smith and nephews Nicholas Ward, Roger Ward, Jordan Brown, Jake Smith, and great nephew Lucas Ward and great niece Ava Ward.

Stuart was employed by the U.S. Census Bureau in the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs in Washington, DC since 2000.  Earlier in his career he was a political strategist and campaign manager for Congressional campaigns in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and California, and he served as a professional staff member for the U.S. House of Representatives (Rep. Harley Staggers, Jr.) from 1983-1993.

In addition to his passion for the Census and public service, Stuart was a lifelong sports fan. He fondly recalled his childhood memories of the glory years of the Baltimore Orioles and grew to be a devoted fan of the Washington Nationals. As a young adult he had many happy memories of playing competitive tennis with his close knit circle of friends in Keyser WV. His wedding was planned to coincide with the Super Bowl, the occasion of his first date with Julie. 

His children Stuart and Abbey were the center of his life. He enjoyed our beach vacations, attending school events, watching them play sports, watching Jeopardy and playing trivia games, and hearing their views about life, politics, music, and sports.

Stuart was a graduate of Keyser High School (1976), Potomac State College (1978) and earned a bachelor’s degree in English from West Virginia University (1980).

A celebration of his life will be held March 11, 2022 in person and virtually from 5:00 -7:00 pm. The in person event will be held at The Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital  (921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE)  Please view the events page for more information.

The family requests that people attending in person be fully vaccinated and comply with current COVID protocols. Please RSVP if you plan to attend in person to TheDurstFamily20@gmail.com.  

Donations in his honor can be made to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation or The Arc of the United States by utilizing the search function.