Happy Birthday to Howard Wood

Blogger Note: When we try to sort through old employee magazines for a photo or information on a retiree it is often a difficult chore. When we posted a story this morning about Howard Wood marking his 87th birthday we did not even try to locate anything and just listed him as a a retired maintenance department employee. He was much more than that, we learned, when we were just sorting through old publications and came upon his retirement story in an old Tower Topics. This photo, much clearer than the reproduction in today’s Beacon Journal, was printed with the story. The issue is undated but it must have been a 1983 issue. The headline said “Goodbye Howard.” We hope, if he happens to see this, that it will be sort of a birthday gift.

Here’s the article:

Goodbye Howard

February 28th is a milestone in the life of Howard Wood. After more than 36 years of electrical experience, Howard hangs up the tools of his trade and joins the millions of senior citizens in the gOlden years of retirement.

Born in Goodyear Hts. in 1921, much of his youth was spent in Arizona and Texas. Howard's father was a test car driver for Goodyear which necessitated a somewhat nomadic life. In 1940, Howard graduated from Green Township High and in 1942 he enlisted in the Navy. His tour of duty included five major battles in the Asiatic and Pacific areas and he was a member of the Philippine liberation forces.

Discharged in 1945, he enrolled in the first veterans training program of electricians in the Akron area. After completing the course he accepted a position with Loomis Electric Company and was the company"s oldest employee in terms of tenure. In the early 1950's, Howard started working at the newly constructed addition of the Beacon Journal and in 1964 was farmed out to the Beacon Journal on a regular weekly basis.


Today, in nooks and crannies, corridors and conference rooms, from the computer banks to the pressroom, traces of Howard's work can be found. Working out of the maintenance department, trouble shooting, repairing and installing new electrical circuits, he became somewhat of a permanent fixture.
Management, as well as employees at Loomis Electric and the Beacon Journal have one phrase to describe Howard, "He's a real nice guy." Howard is a gentle man, slow to anger, quiet (in a mouse like manner) and proficient. Always working on some project. Willing to assist if you have a problem. A saint, you say? No, Howard is a practical joker. He won't admit it, he won't deny it. Shrugging his shoulders, he will walk away, leaving one with the feeling that he is too nice a guy to play pranks. He loves it that way and snickers to himself as he fades into surroundinCl scenery.
As retirees, Howard and his wife, Pauline, plan to garden, travel and babysit. Gardening will be a seasonal project. Travel will play a major role in their future. Howard likes to drive the back roads and enjoy the scenery of rural living, that one can't see on an interstate route.

Gardening and travel may take a back seat to babysitting. Howard and Pauline have three children. A son, Tom of Chardon, the father of a boy and girl. A daughter, Linda of Cuyahoga Falls and the mother of three sons. Barbara of Copley, the mother of a boy and girl. In his role as a babysitter, Howard plans to pamper and spoil his grandchildren. When they become restless, cranky or sleepy, he will take them home to their parents.

Will Rogers once stated" I never met a man I didn't like." Of Howard Wood, one would be compelled to say, "There's a man you have to to like."