Obituaries

Services for Ralph Howell, of Sag Harbor, Will Be Held Saturday

Visitation will take place at Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton.

The following obituary was supplied by the Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton, and edited for style purposes. 

Ralph Howell, 81, of Sag Harbor, and Fountain Hills, Ariz., passed away peacefully on Sept. 25, 2013 after battling a long illness.

He was born in Wewoka, Okla. to Preston and Vernest Faye Howell. He is survived by his wife, Anne and her children Charles Dorego, Paul Dorego and Denise O'Malley and six grandchildren. Also, several nieces and nephews in Texas, Washington State and California. 

Howell served in the military from 1949 to 1955. He enlisted in the National Guard and was deployed during the Korean conflict on active duty. When his initial tour was completed he reenlisted for an additional three years and spent his time in Korea and Japan. He was awarded the Army Occupational Medal (Japan); Korean Service Medal w/1 Bronze Star and the United Nations Service Medal.

He graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1959 and was a member of the Oklahoma Phi Kappa Psi. After graduation he left to live and work in Arizona. He worked for a time as Escrow Officer for several mortgage companies. He retired from Bank of America in the early 1990s. In 1998, he opened a real estate brokerage firm, Ralph Howell & Associates and continued to work as a real estate broker and construction inspector for various banks. He retired again in 2006 and moved to Sag Harbor.

He was a member of the Sag Harbor American Legion and VFW. He was an avid reader, bird watcher, fly fisherman, bocce player and traveled extensively. His Native American heritage was apparent in his quiet, sensitive approach to all life matters. His interests included all things natural and was a member of the Nature Conservancy.

He lived a wonderful rich life through his travels and his ability to make friends easily throughout the US, Canada Mexico and most of all, in Ireland. He was loved by his family and friends and will be much missed.

Memorial Visitation with Sag Harbor VFW and American Legion Service and Military Honors will take place at the Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton on Saturday, October 5th from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to the Southampton Hospital or East End Hospice would be appreciated.


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