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Lou Howard, legendary football coach and former mayor of Amityville, died on January 25. He was 92.
Mr. Howard was born on December 16, 1923, and resided in Amityville his entire life. He served in the Army Air Corps during World War II, graduated from Springfield College in 1948 and later earned a master’s degree in educational administration from New York University. In 14 years as Amityville High School football coach, he led his teams to nine consecutive league championships and five consecutive Rutgers trophies, never posting a losing season. He was known affectionately as “Uncle Lou,” and his game-day attire of black sweater and white cap has become synonymous with Amityville football. Mr. Howard authored several books on football, including one on the shotgun formation, which was the hallmark of his Amityville offense long before it became widely used in professional ball. His knowledge of the psychology of coaching made him a sought-after speaker, and he often delivered pre-game motivational talks to NFL teams such as the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins and the New Orleans Saints. In 2010 he spoke to the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football team and was told by head coach Kirk Ferentz that it was the most inspirational speech he had ever heard. He is an inductee of the Long Island Sports Hall of Fame, Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame, Springfield College Athletic Hall of Fame, Amityville High School Hall of Fame, and several others.
Mr. Howard also held a Ph.D. in aerospace technology from Western Colorado University, and instituted and developed the aerospace program at the State University of New York at Farmingdale, serving as its first department chairman. He holds the distinction of having his initials painted on all of the planes in Farmingdale’s fleet. In 2013, to mark his 90th birthday, he piloted one of the planes and was honored at a ceremony at the college. He authored one of the first texts instructing pilots on how to use the instrument landing system, and it became the standard in the field. He also served as a flight instructor and Federal Aviation Administration flight examiner, and was appointed by Richard Nixon to serve on a federal advisory committee to design the first space shuttle for NASA. He is a member of the Farmingdale College Aviation Hall of Fame.
On the 50th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh’s flight, Mr. Howard retraced Lindbergh’s route, flying commercially and landing in Le Bourget field near Paris. This journey resulted in Dr. Howard spearheading the efforts to unite Le Bourget and Amityville as sister cities. This cultural alliance continues to thrive 35 years later.
He served several terms as mayor of Amityville before being elected to the newly created Suffolk County Legislature, where he represented the 14th District and rose to become presiding officer of the Legislature. He was also elected to represent the 9th District in the New York State Assembly. He was chosen for the Town of Babylon’s list of 100 most influential people of the 20th century, where he was named in the top ten. He also served two terms on the State University of New York Board of Trustees, overseeing the 64 colleges and universities in the SUNY system, and retired last summer from the Stony Brook Council at Stony Brook University.
Mr. Howard was a newspaper publisher and former owner of the Amityville Record and the Suffolk Sun. He was a licensed real estate broker, small business owner, and accomplished woodturner. He was a founding member of the Long Island Woodturner’s Association.
He is survived by his wife of 67 years, Margaret (Webber); seven children, Thomas and wife Pamela, Maureen “Mikey” and husband John Eustace, Bruce, Patrick and wife Anette Sturmann, Margaret “Peggy” Ostermann and husband Dietmar, Jane Schmitt and husband Robin, and Louis T. Jr. He is also survived by 20 grandchildren, Trevor Howard, Kaylie La Lota, Evan Howard, Whitney Howard; Leah, Margaret, John and Alexander Eustace; Margot Howard; Jacqueline, Lars, Olivia, and Bjorn Ostermann; Andrew, Katherine, Blake, and Claire Schmitt; Quinn, Liam and Aidan Howard; and nine great-grandchildren, Tyler, Mairead, Shane, Brady, Ella, and Callan Howard, and Maggie, Reagan and Brooke La Lota. Locally, he is survived by a cousin, Barbara Fanning.
Funeral arrangements were under the direction of the Powell Funeral Home in Amityville. A funeral service took place on January 31 at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Amityville.
Memorial donations may be made to St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 147 Park Avenue, Amityville, NY 11701.
on Jan 28, 2016