Emilieann "Cookie" Howard Vargo

Cookie’s roots ran deep on Indianapolis’s west side. She grew up in the Drexel Gardens neighborhood with her twin brother, Gregory “Skip” Howard, the children of Peter “Pete” and Juanita Howard. Her parents built their life around family, church, and community, providing Cookie and Skip with an early example of what it meant to be involved in and care for the world around them.

Cookie attended Ben Davis High School, following in the footsteps of her mother, Juanita. It was the beginning of a family connection to Ben Davis and Wayne Township that would span generations. Her children, Kelly and Greg, would later attend Ben Davis as well, while her husband, Fred, spent the majority of his teaching career there. Cookie herself would eventually devote decades of service to strengthening educational opportunities throughout Wayne Township.

After Ben Davis, Cookie attended Hanover College, where the gifted English major met an outgoing football player named Frederic Lee “Fred” Vargo. Cookie initially regarded Fred as something of a “dumb jock,” but Fred changed her mind when he swept her off her feet, both literally and figuratively, on the dance floor. Cookie helped Fred with the writing that did not come as naturally to him, while Fred brought his characteristic spontaneity and exuberance into her life. Their college courtship began a marriage and partnership that would last more than six decades.

Education became one of the defining threads of Cookie’s life. An English teacher by profession and an educator at heart, she taught at Riley High School and later in the Ben Davis night-school program. She also helped prepare another generation of educators as a student-teacher supervisor for Hanover College.

Literature and learning remained lifelong passions, and Cookie especially loved Shakespeare. Her favorite play was The Merchant of Venice, which she taught alongside Romeo and Juliet in her night-school classes. Her love of Shakespeare also took her to England as part of a Shakespeare study program, an experience that became part of a continuing family connection to literature, learning, and travel.

Cookie’s commitment to education extended far beyond the classroom. She was a founding member and longtime leader of the Wayne Township Education Foundation, serving the organization for more than three decades. Through the Foundation, she helped strengthen opportunities and resources for Wayne Township teachers and students and supported the creativity and ideas of educators working directly with children. She remained connected to the Foundation throughout her life and was eventually honored as an Emeritus member.

Service was a constant throughout Cookie’s life. She was involved with the Ronald McDonald House in Indianapolis from its earliest days, helping establish a tradition of supporting families with hospitalized children. She also worked with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, where she led Senior Sentinels, helping educate older adults about safety, scams, and fraud.

Cookie gave her time and leadership generously to organizations that mattered to her. She was a longtime member and past president of Tri Kappa in Speedway and held leadership roles with her college sorority, Alpha Delta Pi, including serving as a Province Director. Faith and church community were also important throughout her life. Her roots began at Drexel Gardens Christian Church, and she and Fred later shared decades of church life at Chapel Rock Christian Church, where they were among those who served as youth-group leaders.

Cookie was intelligent, strong-willed, determined, and rarely afraid to speak up when she believed something mattered. She believed in getting involved rather than standing on the sidelines, and she found many ways throughout her life to put that belief into practice.

Cookie and Fred also loved to travel. Their adventures included family trips throughout the United States and Europe, Caribbean cruises, visits to their timeshare in Cancun, and travels with longtime friends. For Cookie, travel was another opportunity to learn, experience something new, spend time with people she loved, and see more of the world she had spent a lifetime reading and teaching about.

Within her family, Cookie was a wife, mother, sister, mother-in-law, and, eventually, Nana. She loved her children, Kelly and Greg, and treasured her twin brother, Skip, whose place in her life stretched all the way back to its very beginning. She also loved her son-in-law, Ted, and knew she could rely on him through the years, whether he was helping with a family project, fixing something that needed attention, or preparing one of the holiday dishes she had taught him to make.

Above all, Cookie delighted in being Nana to her grandsons, Max and Jack. She spent time with them at places such as The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, the zoo, Conner Prairie, and Disney World, while Nana and Bapa’s home became a familiar place for sleepovers, favorite videos, toys, bowls of popcorn, and time together. As the boys grew, Nana and Bapa were there for soccer and baseball games, school programs, karate ceremonies, and graduations. Cookie took great pride in watching her grandsons grow and thrive.

Cookie is survived by her daughter, Kelly Vargo Bowe, and her husband, Ted Bowe; her son, Gregory Christopher Vargo; her grandsons, Max Bowe and Jack Bowe; her twin brother, Gregory “Skip” Howard; and treasured nieces, nephews, extended family members, and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Peter “Pete” and Juanita Howard, and by her beloved husband, Frederic Lee “Fred” Vargo, who passed away on December 17, 2025.

Cookie leaves behind a remarkable record of service, but those who knew her will remember far more than the organizations she strengthened or the positions she held. They will remember her intelligence, determination, generosity, strong convictions, love of learning, devotion to family, and her belief that when something mattered, you found a way to help.

A memorial service celebrating their lives together will be held at Chapel Rock Christian Church on October 17, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. Guests are invited to gather before the service, beginning at 10:00 a.m., to view a collection of photographs and mementos from Fred and Cookie’s lives, with a bit of additional time to visit and view the displays following the service.

In lieu of flowers, our family asks that you consider making a donation in Fred and Cookie’s memory to the Wayne Township Education Foundation or Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Indiana.

Wayne Township Education Foundation: https://tinyurl.com/vargomemorial

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Indiana: https://www.rmhccin.org/donate