Howard Elliott Figler

Howard Figler Howard Elliott Figler, loving father and brother, passed away on Wednesday, February 11, 2015 in Morro Bay, California. A New Yorker at heart, Howard, born in May, 1939 in Brooklyn, spent his early years in Rockville Center, Long Island and was raised by his parents, Frances and Jack Sadoff in Palm Beach, Florida. At Palm Beach High, he was inspired by sports, where he became captain of the tennis team. He and his brother, Stephen K. Figler, long time tennis buddies, became deep students of the sociology of sports. The two brothers, both Ph.Ds, went on to co-author two books together, "Going the Distance: the College Athlete's Guide to Excellence on the Field and in the Classroom" and "The Athlete's Game Plan for College and Career." Howard's education from B.A., M.B.A. to Ph.D [Emory University (1960), New York University (1962), and Florida State University (1967)] laid the foundation for his greatest passion: the value of a person's work, whether the common man or the Ph.D. The writings of several significant authors: journalist Studs Terkel, values clarification psychologist Howard Kirschenbaum, career development theorist John Krumboltz and lastly, Richard N. Bolles (author of the perennial best seller, "What Color is Your Parachute?"), formed the basis of his learning theory for career choice: essence vs. ego. He co-authored, "The Career Counselor's Handbook" with Dick Bolles which has influenced a whole new generation of career development facilitators. He was best known for his book, "The Complete Job-Search Handbook: Everything You Need to Know to Get the Job You Really Want." His theory was constantly put into practice in his own professional positions: Director of Career Placement and Counseling at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and the University of Texas at Austin. With his lifelong dedication to family, he leaves behind his adoring daughters, Elizabeth Hamill Howard and Andrea Hamill Howard; their mother, Janet Filardo; his brothers, Steve and George; sisters-in-law, Valerie Bentz and Deborah Figler; grandniece, Samantha Figler; long-time assistants, Donna Strauss and Rasa Fournier, a slew of nieces and nephews who still imitate his Giant Condor call; doggie-in-law, Chandler; kittie-in-law, Lovejones, and favorite San Francisco Giants players, Posey and "the Pence Man." His love of laughter ("Always leave 'em laughing"), music (Chuck Berry, Sam the Sham and the Pharoahs, Bach Partitas), marathon running and Buddhist philosophy are well-known by those close to him. Howard was buried in Beit Hayyim in the Los Osos Memorial Park, Los Osos, Calif. Instead of flowers, please consider offering butterlamps at Chagdud Gonpa Ati Ling and Chagdud Gonpa Rigdzin Ling or donating to Parkinson's disease research. Sign his guestbook at sanluisobispo.com/obituaries

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Published in San Luis Obispo Tribune on Mar. 17, 2015