Carol Ann Stone (formerly Peter James Stone, 1954–2014) was an English Anglican priest and

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

. She was the first serving priest of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

transition Transition or transitional may refer to: Mathematics, science, and technology Biology * Transition (genetics), a point mutation that changes a purine nucleotide to another purine (A ↔ G) or a pyrimidine nucleotide to another pyrimidine (C ↔ ...

from

male to female A trans woman or a transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity, may experience gender dysphoria, and may transition; this process commonly includes hormone replacement therapy and som ...

. She was ordained in 1978 as a male, underwent

sex reassignment surgery Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and al ...

in 2000, and continued her ministry as a female.

Early life and education

Stone was born in 1954. She studied at the

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_la ...

, and graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in 1975. In 1976, Stone entered

Westcott House, Cambridge Westcott House is an Anglican theological college based on Jesus Lane in the centre of the University of Cambridge, university city of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.Westcott House website, Home pag Retrieved on August 27, 2006. Its main activit ...

, to train for ordination. She also studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

Queens' College, Cambridge Queens' College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the oldest colleges of the university, founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. The college spans the River Cam, c ...

, graduating from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1977 and being promoted to

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

in 1981.

Ordained ministry

Stone was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

in the

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1978 and as

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1979. She served her

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at Holy Trinity Church,

Bradford-on-Avon Bradford-on-Avon (sometimes Bradford on Avon or Bradford upon Avon) is a town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England, near the border with Somerset, which had a population of 9,402 at the 2011 census. The town's canal, historic buildings, s ...

, a

Liberal Anglo-Catholic The terms liberal Anglo-Catholicism, liberal Anglo-Catholic or simply Liberal Catholic, refer to people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism that affirm liberal Christian perspectives while maintaining the traditions culturally associated wi ...

church in the

Diocese of Salisbury The Diocese of Salisbury is a Church of England diocese in the south of England, within the ecclesiastical Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of Dorset (excepting the deaneries of Bournemouth and Christchurch, which fall within the ...

. She received a National Broadcasting Award from the Sandford St Martin Trust in 1979 for her contributions to radio. From 1981 to 1983, Stone held her first

incumbency The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-ele ...

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of St Mary's Church,

Corsley Corsley is a hamlet and civil parish west of Warminster in Wiltshire, England. The parish is on the county border with Somerset; the Somerset town of Frome is about to the northwest. The largest settlement in the parish is Corsley Heath, which ...

, Wiltshire, in the Diocese of Salisbury. From 1983 to 1988, she served as

and head of religious studies at

Dauntsey's School Dauntsey's School is a public school (independent boarding and day school) for pupils aged 11–18 in the village of West Lavington, Wiltshire, England. The school was founded in 1542, in accordance with the will of William Dauntesey, a maste ...

, an independent school in West Lavington, Wiltshire. From 1989 to 1994, she was vicar of St John the Evangelist's Church, Upper Studley, Trowbridge. Then she once more served as a chaplain, this time at

Cheltenham College ("Work Conquers All") , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent SchoolDay and Boarding School , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Nicola Huggett ...

. In 1996, she was appointed vicar of St Philip's Church, Upper Stratton, Swindon. In June 2000, it was announced that she would be taking a short break from her parish work to undergo

. She had the support of her bishop, Barry Rogerson, who stated: In November 2000, she returned to St Philip's and parish ministry and began using the name Carol Ann Stone. During her first Sunday service since returning, one woman shouted negative comments at her before being removed from the church by other churchgoers: a police officer had attended the service as a precautionary measure but did not have to become involved. Stone was given a

standing ovation A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus ...

at the end of the service by the remaining members of the congregation. Four out of eighty members of the congregation left the church because of her transition; the rest "agreed to welcome their priest back as a woman". In 2006, she became a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Swindon College Swindon College is a further education college in Swindon, England. Its campus is at North Star, just north of the town centre. The college offers HNC/Ds and Foundation Degrees, through to B.A. (Hons) courses and a postgraduate programme. St ...

, having completed a course in photography there. In December 2006, she was appointed

priest-in-charge A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent. Such priests are not legally responsible for the churches and glebe, but simply hold a ...

of St Peter's Church, Penhill, Swindon, in addition to her role as vicar of St Philip's.

Military service

In addition to her parish ministry and school chaplaincy, Stone served as

military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term '' ...

. On 18 July 1984, she was commissioned into the

Royal Army Chaplains' Department The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer department that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army. History The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796; until then ...

, Territorial Army, as a Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class (equivalent in rank to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

): she was given the

service number A service number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they may be used in civilian organizations as well. National identification numbers ma ...

''520138''. From 1984 to 1989, she served as chaplain to a unit of the

Army Cadet Force The Army Cadet Force (ACF), generally shortened to Army Cadets, is a national youth organisation sponsored by the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence and the British Army. Along with the Sea Cadet Corps and the Air Training Corps, the ACF m ...

. On 1 January 1990, she was transferred from TA Group B to TA Group A, therefore starting her service in the active reserve section of the Territorial Army. On 1 January 1996, she was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 3rd Class (equivalent in rank to major). In June 2003, she was awarded the

Efficiency Decoration (Territorial) The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

in recognition of long service in the reserves. She resigned her commission on 7 May 2004.

Personal life

Stone had been twice married and divorced: first to Margaret, from 1976 to 1983, and secondly to Jo-Anne, an American. She had one child from her first marriage, a daughter, who was 18 years of age at the time of her

in 2000. Stone died on 27 December 2014 in

Wroughton Wroughton is a large village and civil parish in northeast Wiltshire, England. It is part of the Borough of Swindon and lies along the A4361 between Swindon and Avebury; the road into Swindon crosses the M4 motorway between junctions 15 a ...

from

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a mass. These cancerous cells have the ability to invade other parts of the body. A number of types of panc ...

and was buried in Swindon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, Carol 1954 births 2014 deaths 20th-century English Anglican priests 21st-century English Anglican priests Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Leicester Alumni of Westcott House, Cambridge Army Cadet Force officers Schoolteachers from Wiltshire Church of England priests Deaths from pancreatic cancer English chaplains LGBT Anglican clergy English LGBT people Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Transgender women 21st-century LGBT people