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Howell, Thomas M.

September 24, 1944 –
 March 9, 2017

Obituary

Thomas Michael Howell (Tom) passed away peacefully on March 9, 2017 at the age of 72 at his home in Addison, Texas due to complications related to melanoma. Tom was born on September 24, 1944 in Sacramento, California to Thomas Nutting Howell and Mary Elizabeth (Liz) Howell. A fourth-generation Northern Californian, Tom spent his childhood in Oroville, California, and later moved to Roseville, California, where he played baseball, football, and basketball at Roseville High School as a member of the class of 1962. After graduation, Tom continued his education at Sacramento State University, where he was a collegiate baseball pitcher and graduated with a B.A. in Physical Education and a minor in English. After earning his teaching credential, Tom taught English and coached baseball and football for many years at Del Oro High School in Loomis, California. Following his career in teaching, he lived in Citrus Heights, California and was an enthusiastic regular at Omaha Hi-Lo games at the Lucky Derby. In 2012, Tom relocated to Addison, Texas to be closer to his daughter, Kelli, and his granddaughters, Bridget and Charlotte. Following his move to Texas, he spent much of his time reading books, following the stock market, enjoying long walks around the neighborhood, playing Omaha at the WinStar on Saturdays, and attending as many North Texas LPGA tournaments as possible. A loving father and a devoted grandfather, Tom enjoyed golfing, watching the San Francisco Giants, reading the novels of John Sandford, eating mint chocolate chip ice cream, playing cards, encouraging sarcasm in children, challenging equivocations, and cheering on whichever team was playing against the San Francisco 49ers in a given week. He was preceded in death by his parents, Tom and Liz Howell, and his niece Joanna Howell. Tom is survived by his daughter Kelli Howell Heinzerling, her husband Dan, and granddaughters Bridget and Charlotte, all of Addison, Texas; his brother, Dan Howell and his wife Jan, of Cary, NC; nephews Robbie, Tommy and Mike Howell, and extended family and dear friends. A private memorial service will be held this summer in Northern California. As a former high school English teacher, Tom was often asked how to encourage children to love reading. His consistent advice was to let children always choose the books that they want to read, not the books that you think they should read. He strongly believed that letting kids read whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted, was the key to cultivating a love of books. Accordingly, in lieu of flowers, the family requests that you take a child you love to the bookstore, and let that child choose some books or magazines that they would like to read… not the books that you think they should read. Tom Howell 2 Tom Howell 3 Tom Howell 4 Arrangements are under the direction of: ARIA Cremation Service & Funeral Home 19310 Preston Road, Dallas, Texas 75252 214-306-6700

    MOLLY Turley
    17 Mar 2017
    7:03pm

    God speed Tom Howell. Thank you for being so kind. I will miss you.

    Leslie Arlett
    22 Mar 2017
    1:57pm

    A friend and all around good guy! My Love to all his family.

    Leslie Huskinson Arlett

    Beryl (Singley) Mayne
    22 Mar 2017
    3:56pm

    May Tom’s spirit rise & fly free in the heavens .

    Judy Schwanke Swanson
    23 Mar 2017
    1:54pm

    I wish his RHS classmates could have met him in recent years. He sounded like a wonderful person. So sorry for the family’s loss.

    Mike O'Rell
    23 Mar 2017
    2:04pm

    Rest In Peace my friend

    Barbara Spain
    23 Mar 2017
    4:43pm

    I have many fond memories of Tom from our high school days. Sending my sympathy and love to his family and friends.

    Lydia Torres. High School classmate.
    23 Mar 2017
    7:48pm

    Not only was he good looking, he was also a very nice and kind person.

    May God’s strength be with you and rest of the family, during this time and always.

    Sharon (Benedetti) Soos
    25 Mar 2017
    11:20am

    I have fond memories of Tom from our years at RHS. My deepest condolences to his family.

    Dennis Damitz
    25 Mar 2017
    5:53pm

    I enjoyed Tom’s friendship during our years at RUHS ’62.

    John Doyle
    26 Mar 2017
    8:27pm

    I remember your wonderful sense of humor in High School. I too was a 4th generation of northern CA. Since 2000 we have lived in Chico (next door to Oroville) I did graduate from Del Oro HS after attending Roseville High. We are both September 1944. We know our paths will cross again in Heaven. Sharing in the loss of a loving father and grandfather.

    Hank Becerra
    26 Mar 2017
    9:39pm

    My deepest condolences to Tom’s family went high school with tom may he rest in peace

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"Excellent customer service, they made you feel like you were their only customer. Very helpful and explained what we should expect during the process. They basically took care of our needs during this time. They contacted DFW National Cemetery for us which made it a smooth experience. Definitely will use them again."
K. Barker
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"I was amazed how professional the team at Aria Funeral Preston Dallas Texas are. They guided me through the process and my options of their services that they offered for my mother. They are compassionate, caring, calm, good listener, efficient and did an excellent job! Thank you!"
R. Woll
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"If I could give 6 stars I would. Aria made a difficult easier to deal with by basically taking care of everything in an efficient but very empathetic manner. I can speak highly enough of Dusty Martin, who helped us with all of the planning and logistics. He was incredibly understanding and helpful."
Angel M.
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"Nothing prepares you for the grief you go through when losing a child. I called this funeral home at 2:00 am broken and could barely talk. The amount of compassion and empathy they showed me immediately let me know I found the right place to cremate my son. I cannot thank them enough for their professionalism, SINCERE concern, and commitment to making sure my son was honored in the most respectful way. I hope this Funeral home values her as much as my family and I do."
McGee Family
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"Wayne and Staff, thank you for taking care of the arrangements for our mom, Exter McGee and our dad, Philip McGee. You have been great to work with during such a difficult time."
Elledge Family
Elledge Family
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"On behalf of my family, I wanted you to know how much we appreciate your handling of my husband's final arrangements. Wayne Baxter assisted & guided us through the entire process with such care & compassion. Don't know what we would have done without him! Sincerely, Colleen Elledge"
The Peterson Family
The Peterson FamilyYelp! Review - Northwest Highway 5-Stars
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"I can’t say enough about how helpful and professional Dusty Martin, the funeral director at the Aria Cremation location on NW Highway has been. From my initial call, he was kind and informative. My friend died at home while on hospice and she was picked up in about an hour after receiving the call from the hospice nurse. The person who arrived to pick her up was also very professional/respectful and allowed us to take as much time with her as we wished. When I met with Dusty the next day about arrangements, he explained the process and options available without being pushy or trying to “sell” extras. Throughout the process, he kept me informed and, for example, was careful to be certain I understood the cost of the obituary I wanted and offered some options for reducing that cost if I wished. When I stopped by for another reason and started talking about some of the problems I was having with the pictures and media I hoped to use at a memorial lunch I was planning, he not only listened patiently but offered technology advice and let me use his personal media player. I have had experience arranging cremations for four others using two other local companies, and this experience with Dusty at Aria has been by far the best one I have had."
Paula Barnes
Paula BarnesGoogle Review
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"My Daddy’s service and our family experience at Aria Northwest Highway was truly blessed. Funeral Director Dustin Martin is the kind of person that you would like to see on a more regular basis – but in his industry – you hope to not see him that often. That being said – THANK YOU DUSTIN for your unending kindness, compassion and friendship through the process. Meeting you and discussing Dallas History, Find A Grave and my Dad’s lifelong contributions to the great City of Dallas was simply wonderful! In memory of my dad James A. Dodd, Sr. – I want to personally thank you and let you know that you made everything better in that moment. Your calling to “Be There” is spot on. Aria has a one in a million guy in you! Bling Blinky of TEXAS Shout Out: God Bless You!!"
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  1. If death has occurred and or is imminent, please call the Aria location nearest you.

    PRESTON ROAD
    214.306.6700

    NORTHWEST HIGHWAY
    214.340.8008

    BELTLINE ROAD
    972.607.4400

  2. Click here to Download the Cremation Forms.
  3. Have the cremation authorization form notarized
  4. Fax the forms back to us at:
    • NW Highway
      214-340-8009
    • Preston Rd.
      972-526-7410
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      972-573-1008
 

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