During the decade in which Steve Doster was assistant general manager at Stone Mountain Park (1975-1984), he helped initiate a variety of popular attractions — water slides, a miniature golf course, an outdoor skating trail and the Memorial Hall history complex.
But what he considered his crowning achievement, said his son, Simeon Doster of Watkinsville, was starting Stone Mountain’s laser shows, an assignment for which he was project manager.
“Steve played a critical role in developing the park’s laser shows,” said Spurgeon Richardson, former president and CEO of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau. “It was an immediate success then, and it continues to draw thousands of visitors today.”
Terry Coker of Marietta, a former park employee, said there was nothing like it anywhere in the Southeast 30 years ago.
“Steve put the right people in the right places to develop our laser show graphics, some of which are still featured now,” Coker said. “He was a great guy to work for because he gave his employees plenty of rope — and we could either pull ourselves up with it or hang ourselves.”
Doster also was in charge of the park’s advertising and public relations and often traveled with the park’s board members to inspect attractions at other parks around America.
In addition, he handled arrangements for annual park events such as the Yellow Daisy Festival, the Scottish Festival and Highland Games and the Easter Sunrise Service and Egg Hunt.
Alexander Stephen Doster III, 69, died of cancer Wednesday at his Athens home. A memorial service will be at 3 p.m. Sunday at Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Athens. Bridges Funeral Home, Athens, is in charge of arrangements. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in his memory to Downtown Ministries in Athens (www.downtownministries.org).
Born in Albany, Doster attended schools in Atlanta, graduating from East Atlanta High in 1961. After a stint in the Navy, he worked in managerial jobs at several Atlanta trucking firms before taking the Stone Mountain Park post.
From 1986 until his retirement in 2001, he supervised billing for Southern Company Services, a Southern Co. subsidiary.
Doster took up woodworking as a serious hobby in 1988. His son said he specialized in designing and building furniture in the Shaker style — simple lines and no ornamentation. He built chairs, tables, armoires, bookshelves and trunks for the family and also for sale at antique shows.
Also surviving are his wife of 47 years, Meg Doster; a daughter, Stephanie Hoyt of Snellville; and four grandchildren.
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