LAKE WALES -- Mr. Stanley S. Smilee, the former owner of Port Hatchineha Restaurant and Marina, was a big man with a big heart.

"He was just a big teddy bear," said his daughter, Melissa Torgersen of Davenport. "He was a very big man. People called him `Big Stan.' He could put a handshake on you that would break your hand. I've seen him take a phone book and tear it in two."

Mr. Smilee died Wednesday (June 8, 2005) in Lakeland of complications following a stroke. He was 71.

He was born in New Castle, Pa., on Feb. 22, 1934, and came to Tampa at the age of 2. He married his high school sweetheart when he was 17, and the couple came to Haines City in 1957 to start a family.

The couple owned and operated Port Hatchineha Restaurant and Marina before selling the business in the mid- to late 1980s.

"It was quite the happening place when Daddy had it. They had a bait shop, little rental units, spaces for campers . . . It was a lot of fun," said Torgersen, noting that her parents ran the business together.

Mr. Smilee was an outdoorsman with a strong faith in God. He went on a mission trip to Honduras in the 1980s to help build a church. He also ran for county commissioner in the 1980s.

"He was just a fun-loving man," said his daughter, Jennifer Smilee of Brandon. "He could actually fix anything, and people thought he was a funny, good, sweet guy."

He was a Navy veteran of the Korean War. He was a member of the Haines City Masonic Lodge. He was a Pentecostal.

In addition to his daughters, Melissa Torgersen and Jennifer Smilee, Mr. Smilee is survived by his wife, Nancy Smilee; sons, Stan Smilee Jr. and Shannon Smilee, both of Lake Wales; brother, Gary Smilee, Lutz; and two grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 2 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Oak Ridge Funeral Care, 1001 Grace Ave., Haines City. Services will follow at 3 p.m. at the funeral home chapel. Burial will be in Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell.

Memorials may be made to Florida Baptist Children's Home, P.O. Box 8190, Lakeland, FL 33802, or Stillwater Christian Life Center, 100 McKay Drive, Haines City, FL 33844.