John J Howe

The Dalles, Oregon

March 3, 2012

 Mr. Howe served our Nation from 1944 to 1946 with the U.S. Navy Seabees. "Jack" until his passing was the oldest living former Mayor for the City of The Dalles. 
"Jack" was a Carpenters Mate 2nd Class, serving in the Phillipines, China and New Guinea. He was awarded the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal with 1 Star, Phillipine Liberation Medal with 1 Star, WWII Victory Medal and the American Campaign Medal. 

They Came To Honor Our Hero, Click photo below:

March 3, 2012

Howe, Jack 90 Jan. 06, 1922 Feb. 08, 2012 John Joseph Howe of The Dalles died quietly Wednesday, Feb. 8 after a long illness. He was with his family at the Veteran's Hospital in The Dalles. He was 90. Jack was born in Brownsville to Lyman and Dorothy Howe. He lived in many places in Oregon as a young man. A product of the Great Depression, out of necessity he worked hard to support himself. As a high school student, he lived alone sometimes in a tent from the time he was 16. He graduated from Taft High school in 1940. Immediately after graduation he married Peggy Howard of Depoe Bay and they moved to Portland where, before WWII, Jack first worked as a warehouseman for Boyd's Coffee at $12 a week and later as a longshoreman and a logger. In 1943, Jack enlisted in the Navy and served in New Guinea, the Philippines and China as a Seabee until the end of the war. After the war, Jack and Peggy moved to The Dalles where Jack began a 50 year career as a life insurance underwriter for Mutual of New York where his sales volume won him national awards year after year. Jack often said that that if he could live anywhere in the world, it would be The Dalles. He loved living in a small, friendly and caring community and Jack was very active in the community, serving on boards and commissions too numerous to list completely. Among many other things, at various times Jack was Mayor of The Dalles, president of the PTA, Chairman of the Wasco County Civil Service Commission and a member of the Wasco County and State Selective Service Commission, president of the Salvation Army Board and Chairman of the Wasco County United Fund. He was a member of the Masonic Lodge for over 60 years. He was always a strong Republican voice in local and state politics. Jack was also very active in life insurance professional activities and he racked up many national awards. He was president of the Mid-Columbia Life Underwriters Association and the Oregon State Life Underwriters Association. He was Man of the Year of the Portland CLU Chapter and he received the Bud Horn Award from the Oregon State Life Insurance Underwriters Association for lifetime achievement. An underwriter for Mutual of New York, he was a member of MONY's Hall of Fame. He led the Oregon agency in sales nine times. He was a life member of the Million Dollar Round Table and he received national quality awards 34 times. Jack reserved a substantial amount of his legendary energy for his church, Calvary Baptist, where he was a member for 65 years. He took responsibility for overseeing the construction of two new churches for Calvary Baptist, one on East 12th Street and later, another on Columbia View Drive. He also oversaw the funding of both churches and with perseverance, saw that the last church mortgage was paid in full prior to his death. He was mightily proud of his family and his loving wife, Peggy. Jack and Peggy were married for 71 years and for that Jack always considered himself the luckiest man alive. He devoted much of his time, especially in his later years to the care and maintenance of his family. He is survived by his wife, Peggy; his daughter, Jeanine (Bruce) Dirksen; two sons, Roger (Edna) and Greg (Linda); eight grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren. The family of course will miss him terribly and he will be missed by those who knew him. The family thanks you for your support and prayers. A celebration of Jack's life will be held Saturday, March 3 at 11 a.m. at Calvary Baptist Church in The Dalles. There was an earlier graveside service for family. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Jack Howe Scholarship fund at Calvary Baptist Church, 3350 Columbia View Drive, The Dalles 97058.