He was formerly a senior adviser to Governor Bruce Sundlun and served three terms on the Newport City Council before resigning to take the job at the chamber. He currently serves on numerous boards advocating such causes as historic preservation, education, economic development and equal rights. Prior to 1976, Newport was a working-class city populated by blacks, Greeks, Portuguese, Irish and Jewish residents, most of whom worked on the waterfront. But the America's Cup race during the national bicentennial celebration brought change. Gentrification swept in, the working class was pushed out and tenements on the wharf became townhouses on the hill.
Tourists now travel from all over to visit the majestic mansions and waterways.
While private investment has helped boost the city's economy, the irony is that many of the children of the working-class families that helped to build the city can no longer afford to live there. Despite such displacement by urban renewal, Stokes believes the key to preserving history and educating children lies within the family. When he is not working, he is with his children, imparting knowledge and teaching by example.