Wayne Howard Harris

Wayne Howard Harris passed away on March 11, 2024 (65) in North Lauderdale, Florida. He is survived by his daughter, Samantha Harris (Robert Harrison Shapiro); his brothers, Arnold Harris (Cindy), Mark Harris; his sister, Shelley Kousser; his nieces and nephews and his long-time girlfriend, Robin Hathaway. He has been predeceased by his father, Benjamin Loeb and mother, Lillian Harris.

In my 33 years of life, I have learned many things from my relationships I have had with people. But more specifically, him. Despite our strained relationship, he has instilled many valuable lessons that I will hold onto as I move forward in life.

These lessons, however, do not fall into your lap sometimes. His personal struggles in life have also shown me that life is not easy. That we all carry our set of difficulties in life. He was no stranger to pain, for all pain is pain. Yet, his complexities still shine a light on the beautiful aspects of life, to himself and those that he loved. While my father’s life was marked by struggle, it was also filled with moments of connection and hope. His presence left permanent footprints in many of our lives.

He has taught me to be kind to others. To not expect anything in return when doing something out of love. To live life as freely as I can. To love deeply… And I found love, my husband Rob, who reminds me of my dad in so many ways.

My dad was a lot of things and I think the biggest thing I can say is, he was always well dressed! I admired that so much. No matter what he was doing, where he was going or who he was seeing, he always had a tucked in shirt and slicked back salt and pepper hair. And cannot forget to make sure the mustache is snipped and looking fresh.

I remember many weekends working out in the yard. There were always one or two sprinklers that always needed fixing or replacing. At 12 years old, I think I could safely replace a sprinkler head all on my own. We planted A LOT! But with all of that practice, I never developed his green thumb.

Dad cared about a lot...his family, his love, and his life. When my dad told me he was seeing this incredible woman, I had to hear more. This amazing woman who loved my dad till his last days is Robin. She has stood by him and loved him when I could not be there, and I am pretty sure even if I was there, her love would shine through to his heart always.

His life was full and a little adventurous! As long as he had family and a passport, he was happy. We went on many cruises. One of them was just a daddy daughter trip, and that was my favorite cruise we ever took! Though, he did let me “find out” that the pools were salt water only. We both had a good laugh about it while my eyes were on fire. But dad knew what to do, ice cream. Family was a big part of his life...a son, brother, uncle and dad. He lived for his family and did everything he could to be there for everyone. My dad has and had a lot of love to share with the world, and I could only hope to share that kind of love with others in my life.

Dad got to do one more miracle, he brought our family closer together. For that, I know we all love him for that.

I will forever miss my dad, love him and hope to make him proud as I make my way through life.

I hope everyone who knew him got to see all of these beautiful attributes my dad had.

“I love you dad, from your Pooh Bear.”