Sarah Wallis Stevens, who for two decades served as “First Lady” of Williston Academy, died peacefully in her sleep Feb. 9 of natural causes at her assisted living home in Middletown, Connecticut, according to her family.
Sarah Stevens was the wife of Phillips Stevens, headmaster of the Easthampton-based academy from 1949 to 1972. The school, founded in 1841 as Williston Seminary, merged with the Northampton School for Girls in 1971 to form the coed Williston Northampton School, which now attracts students from around the world.
Described as a woman of “extraordinary warmth and empathy,” Stevens provided care and guidance to thousands of Williston Academy students, said her daughter Ruth P. Stevens, who lives in New York City.