Sunday, January 21, 2024
My sympathies to the family of Olympia “Lee” Howard. I met Lee several years ago through Family Promise Program at St. Vincent Martyr. Lee worked hard reaching out to those less fortunate. We worked side by side for many years folding sets of sheets into packets for when less fortunate families, many with children, came for a week to live in spaces provided by our parish. Lee always went above and beyond, bringing in newly purchased blankets to replace worn out items. She toted the items from her car into our assembly point by herself even as her age advanced. Lee was devoted to her family, enjoying time with her grandchildren who lived in Madison. I heard about them as they grew up. She loved her husband of sixty plus years, was proud of her children and glad to have her daughter live nearby. Lee helped others whenever she could. And occasionally, she had time to enjoy a beach home in the Lavallette area. Lee let me know when she was diagnosed with cancer and I called her a few times. I would ask Lee’s grandson Robert how his grandmother was doing. Around Thanksgiving, I called Lee on the phone to see how she was doing. In our short conversation, I could tell her health was failing. That was the last time we talked. I give thanks for having known Lee Howard, a special woman who loved others to the very core of her being. May God bless the Howard family in your time of sorrow.
