Diane F Howell

Diane Fowler Howell, 79 of Port O’Connor, Texas passed away May 7, 2016. She was born May 6, 1937 in Memphis, TN to the late Royce and Sally Fowler. Diane graduated from Memphis State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in English, and was a member of the Salem Lutheran Church in Port Lavaca.

Diane is survived by her husband William C. “Dixie” Howell; her son, Mark (Lauren) Howell of Port Lavaca, her daughters, Sherry (Scott) Haynes of Kennesaw, GA, Lindy Cain (Tommy May) of Port Lavaca; and her nine grandchildren: Douglas, Shaughnessy, and David Howell of Port Lavaca, Kim, Amy, Luke, and Emily Haynes of Kennesaw, Heather and Sara Cain of Port Lavaca; and her brother, Jim (Jane) Fowler along with six nieces and nephews.

In addition to her parents, Diane was preceded in death by her beloved sister, Nancy Treadway.

Diane led a full and wonderful life. She was born and grew up in Memphis, Tennessee and in her junior year in high school she met the love of her life, Dixie Howell. They married on October 26th, 1959 and had three children: Mark, Sherry, and Lindy. Due to Dixie’s U.S. Air Force career, the family moved around often, landing in Port Lavaca in 1974. Diane was very active and often served as the President of the Officers Wives Club at each of Dixie’s duty stations. In Port Lavaca, she was involved in the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority, and was also one of the founding members and eventual president of the OCCIC (Original Calhoun County Investment Club), which was formed in 1996 and is still active today. She was very devoted to her job at the US Census Bureau, which applied her social skills and emphasized her natural ability of talking with a variety of people. She also enjoyed playing Mah Jong with all of her friends every Friday, attended Bridge Club every month with her son Mark as her partner, and casually played bridge every Friday night with her husband and their friends Buddy & Lucille Winder. Diane loved all of her friends dearly and was also incredibly passionate about her family. She and her husband Dixie worked tirelessly to ensure an annual vacation full of family fun, laughter, and bonds to last a lifetime. Diane, or “Gran” as she was known by her nine grandkids and all their friends, was always at the center of the family in making sure everyone was emotionally well, and ensuring she was ‘in’ on the latest family news. She was a brilliant woman who was always collecting what she called ‘useless trivia’ and was known for staying awake until the wee hours of the morning perusing the latest of her many books. She was a woman of many talents, with her natural skills of observation rivaled only by her boundless kindness and sassy-sweet personality. Diane Howell had so many wonderful qualities that made her the beautifully generous soul she was, and her memory will live on in the hearts of all who knew her.

A time of visitation will be held from 6 to 8 pm on Wednesday, May 11, 2016 at the Richardson Colonial Funeral Home in Port Lavaca. A memorial service will be held at 10 am on Thursday, May 12, 2016 at the Salem Lutheran Church in Port Lavaca with the Rev. Dan Zellmer officiating.

Words of comfort may be shared with the family at www.richardsoncolonial.com