From President Dale Harshman – It is with a sad heart that I report to you the passing of our Chapter VP, Eric Howard, on 7 October 2019. He was a founding member of the George Washington Chapter and our first Chapter President. (11 Oct 2019). He was a friend and mentor, and will be greatly missed. A celebration of his life will be held on Thursday, 17 October 2019, beginning at 1:00pm, at the Westford Funeral Home in Bellingham.
Comments by David Stochton at Eric’s Celebration of Life
I’m David Stockton, the Chapter chaplain, or “padre,” of the George Washington Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution.
I knew Eric through our chapter meetings. Eric was president when I joined the SAR two years ago.I have been in the post of chaplain for about the past year. I know during times like this it’s the role of a chaplain to talk about how things like this are all a part of God’s plan, but I’m not going to say any of that because to be perfectly honest I do not understand why this happened. Like I expect most of you are feeling, I am feeling tremendous shock and anger at how Eric was taken from us.
As I have said, I knew Eric through our chapter meetings and always enjoyed his sense of humor and in particular his disdain for all things politically correct. That is something that he and I definitely share, and his off-the-wall sense of humor and sarcasm are all things that will stay in my heart when I think of him.
To add a little to what Captain Hutchins spoke of just now about who the Sons of the American Revolution are, we are lineal blood descendants of American patriots who fought to create our nation. All of the gentlemen sitting here today wearing Revolutionary War uniforms, all of us in the SAR, can tell you by heart the name of their patriot ancestor, what state they came from, and what role they played in fighting for American independence. Eric was one of us, and I know he was a great patriot. One thing that I will always remember about Eric was his comments about Bellingham’s Pickett Bridge and how he went up against civic authorities who were trying to erase Pickett’s name because he later served as a Confederate officer (after his time spent in Washington Territory).
If any of you out there think you may have ancestors who served in the Revolution, I would urge you to look into that and to pursue your roots and find out more. We would love to have you in our ranks.
I am very sorry that Eric is gone, and I can tell you that a spark will go out of our chapter meetings without him there. Again, my deepest condolences to you all.
Thank you.
Comments by Mike Hutchins at Eric’s Celebration of Life
ERIC HOWARD
We are here in uniform today to honor Eric’s 34 years of service to the Sons of the American Revolution.
I asked SAR member STAN WILLS about Eric’s participation in the Spokane Chapter he responded with “ He will be missed for all his wisdom on SAR matters”.
I also recall that Eric could always be counted on to offer his recollection of SAR past events, giving us valuable perspective that we would not have otherwise been aware of in our decision making.
Eric became a member November 15, 1985. He served our organization in many capacities, leader and mentor. He served in several elected officer positions including President of Washington SAR 2000-2001.
He was a charter member of the George Washington Chapter and its first president becoming a Trustee when the stepped down and then filling the vacant Vice Presidency last year
It is with great sadness that I present you with the SAR Member Grave Marker.
He will be missed!
