Howard grew up in the Bronx, attended public schools and received his high school diploma in June of 1946.
Howard served in the U.S. Army during the Korean conflict between the years 1950 and 1952, completing his service with an honorable discharge as a corporal serving as a warrant officer overseeing the security of detained soldiers in U.S. custody in Alaska where he was stationed for 13 months.
Howard was an electrician by trade who worked in commercial construction in New York City for more than 40 years and had been, for many years, a loyal member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) local 3. Among the many projects he worked on was the refurbishing of Grand Central Station in Manhattan.
His father was Alex Sacharoff (b. 1885, d. 1937), a shoemaker in Lower Manhattan and an immigrant from Minsk, Russia in the early 20th century. Howard’s father passed away when Howard was only 8 years old and thus Howard was raised by his mother. He learned early on the importance of self-reliance, as he was able to cook and care for himself from a young age. His self-reliant nature persisted throughout his life and he rarely, if ever, would ask for or accept assistance in any form.
His mother Fanny Sacharoff (Kilfin) also emigrated from Minsk, Russia in 1921, bringing two of her four children (Simka and Leben) who took English names of Silvia (b. 1912, d. 2004) and Louis (b. 1911 and d. 2007) upon their arrival into Ellis Island. He had another sister born in the U.S. in 1923 named Lilly (d. 1998). Howard grew up in an Orthodox Jewish household and, on October 18th, 1953, he married his one and only wife, Hope Zwicker (b. 1932), at the Alcott Hotel in New York City.
Howard and his wife Hope worshiped for many years at the Reform synagogue of Temple Sinai in Tenafly, New Jersey, where they celebrated the Bar Mitzvah of both of their sons Alex (b. 1957) and Daniel (b. 1959). He and our mother were very comfortable with the Reform Jewish rituals and proudly taught them and exemplified this to both of their sons.
Howard was a member of the NRA for many years and an avid collector of antique guns, as well as a fine marksman.
Howard was also known as an excellent craftsman who built many beautiful pieces of art, including cradles for both his sons to use with their children as well as sculptures and many pieces of wood marquetry. His mother would often refer to Howard from an early age as someone who had “golden hands.”
Howard had a deep love of and respect for the outdoors and spent many weeks paddling the entire length of the Colorado River on many rafting trips, as well hiking avidly in the Arizona foothills after he and Hope arrived into the Valley in April of 1995.
Hope and Howard made friends easily and Howard was always willing to help a friend with minor electrical work in their home, often without accepting any monetary compensation.
Soon upon arriving in the Valley, they made a new set of friends which included none other than famed psychiatrist Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, who Mom and Dad would often visit in her later years to provide comfort and assistance at her Scottsdale home.
Howard was known to be a very spiritual person and had a golden aura about him which was evident to all knew him, brightening all our lives.
Howard is survived by Hope Sacharoff (Zwicker), his beloved wife of 66 years and his sons Alex and Daniel and their wives Sheryl and Robbin, as well as his grandchildren Justin (30), Cory (28), Dani (27) and Cali (21) and was predeceased by his grand-daughter Sami.
In lieu of flowers, donations would be welcome at The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. https://www.lls.org/
DONATIONS
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18