Howard Eugene Williams, 78, of Helena passed away Feb. 5, 2011, while wintering in Glendale, Ariz. He fought a long battle with lung cancer. <\/p>\n
Howard was born in Moore to David Levi Williams and Gertrude Constance (Anderson) Williams on Dec. 11, 1932, the sixth of nine children. He attended school in Moore, moved to Hobson where he finished his schooling and graduated, then moved with his family to California. Howard served four years in the Air Force where he was trained in telephone line work. He proudly served in the Korean War. <\/p>\n
Howard married his childhood sweetheart, Leona Williams, of Lewistown June 11, 1955, in Hawthorne, Calif. where he worked for Texas Oil. They returned to Lewistown where Howard went to work for Mountain States Telephone Company. He left the company at various times of his career to pursue other interests. He loved selling farm equipment and running his Bobcat loader in Hobson, and started \u201cThe Farm Exchange\u201d in Lewistown. He also traveled for Midland Implement of Billings setting up Toyota dealerships throughout Montana for a short while. Howard\u2019s telephone career took him to Lewistown, Harlowton, Hardin, Bozeman and finally Helena where he lived for the past 35 years. After retiring from Mountain Bell in 1986, Howard and Leona founded Pioneer Telephone Company in Helena, which they ran for 15 years.
Howard was active in the communities he lived in. He was appointed to the Governor\u2019s Board of Vo-Tech Council, was a Cub Scout leader, a baseball coach, a member of the American Legion, Eagles, Elks and Knights of Columbus, and belonged to AA for 30 years where he was an example to many. <\/p>\n
Always with a twinkle in his eye, a grin and a pleasant and warm heart, Howard\u2019s magnetic personality endeared him to all who knew him. He loved and adored his wife, children and 10 grandchildren and having his immediate and extended family around him. They in return loved him and will miss him dearly. Howard enjoyed telling them stories and watching sports, recalling when he played basketball and football in high school. He had great faith and love for God. <\/p>\n
Howard was preceded in death by his parents and brothers, Don, Jim and Jack. <\/p>\n
He is survived by his wife, Leona; his children, Leslie (Bruce) Kesler of Choteau, David (Shelly) Williams of Bozeman, Doug Williams (Jamie Rogers) of Helena and Beverly (Lane) Yeager of Choteau; and his grandchildren, Scott, Jenna, C.J., Clint, Tawny, Coty, Charleyne, Darby, Garret and Tori. He leaves behind his sisters, Jane (Jim) Pittaway of Virginia, Sharon (George) Maloof of Florida; brothers, Bob (Kati )Williams of Hobson, Gary (Mary) Williams of Dillon and Richard (Sandy) Williams of California; as well as numerous nieces, nephews and extended family. <\/p>\n
Thanks to Dr. Weiner, Dr. Paustian and all their staff, and all the medical providers who saw him throughout his years of illness. <\/p>\n
Come join family and friends in a celebration of Howard\u2019s life 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, March 15 at Our Redeemer\u2019s Lutheran Church, 1400 Stuart Street. Interment will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers memorials in Howard\u2019s name are suggested to the Cancer Treatment Center at St. Peter\u2019s Hospital 2475 Broadway Street Helena, Montana 59601 or to a charity of the donor\u2019s choice. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.aswfuneralhome.com.<\/p>\n","photo":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/328856_profile_pic.jpg","youtube_video_url":"","family_email":"","family_first_name":"","family_last_name":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case\/779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/case"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}