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HOWARD
"HOWIE" ARTHUR HODGE
(08/31/39 -
01/28/17)
prepared by Polly Reid |
Saturday
afternoon on January 28, 2017, Howard ‘Howie’ Arthur
Hodge passed away at the St. Francis Hospital in
Hartford, CT. Surrounded by family at the time of
his passing, Howard was 77 years old.
Born on August 31, 1939 at the Hartford Hospital,
Howard was the second of three children to Dorothy (Hoadley)
and Leon Hodge.
His first few years were spent in Glastonbury, CT
before the Hodge family moved to East Hartford where
Howard went to school graduating from the East
Hartford High School in 1957.
Growing up, Howard had a paper route for ‘quite a
few years’. The pile of papers would be left on the
front lawn and Howard would be responsible for
folding them, putting them in the big cloth bag then
ride around the neighborhood delivering the Hartford
Times. His sister Lois fondly remembers his bicycle
that ‘he fixed up until it was like a motorcycle’
complete with a windshield, skirts, streamers and
side view mirrors.
Howard became interested in short wave radio and
after being a SWL, short- wave listener, he became
an amateur short wave radio operator. He was a
member of the Amateur Radio Relay League.
Enlisted in the Army for three and a half years
from1958-1961, after basic training, Howard was
stationed in Orleans, France at a transmitter sight
maintaining communications gaining the rank of SP3.
Returning from France, Howard met Mary Garraway
through his older brother Bob and sister-in-law
Virginia.
Howard and Mary were married on May 18, 1963 at the
Hockanum United Methodist Church on Main Street in
East Hartford. They made their home in Manchester.
Howard worked at Hartford Electric Light, now called
Eversource from 1961 until his retirement in 2005.
Most likely, Howard will be remembered for his
nearly fifty years of motorsports photography. Along
with his wife Mary, they captured decades of auto
racing through their lens for such publications as
Area Auto Racing, Speedway Scene and The Chrome Horn
as well as numerous other trade magazines and
speedway programs. In the earlier years, Howard and
Mary used to operate the photo booth at Stafford
Motor Speedway and then the Waterford Speedbowl as
well. That evolved to the pair becoming NASCAR
photographers for the now called K&N Series as well
as the Whelen Modified Tour. Working as a team,
Howard and Mary’s travels brought them to over 150
speedways around the country with well-planned trips
to local tracks along the way no matter what
direction they were headed. Their last assignment
was with Area Auto Racing News.
In 1996, Howard and Mary received the Dedication
Award from NASCAR.
Howard earned the Smiley Waterman Award from the
Modified Tour Auxiliary in 2004.
The Ace Lane Memorial Award from EMPA for
Outstanding Motorsports Photography in 2008 went to
both Howard and Mary.
In 2010 they received the Jack Ratta Memorial Media
Award, presented by the New England Antique Racers
and in 2012, Howard and Mary received the Sony
Richards Memorial award as well.
Earlier in January, Howard and Mary were inducted
into the Eastern Motorsports Press Association Hall
of Fame.
Howard is predeceased by his parents, Dorothy and
Leon Hodge, his older brother Bob, brother in-law
Daniel LaPorte and sister in-law Sarah G. Yeager.
Married for fifty-three years, Howard is survived by
his wife Mary, son Kevin, sister Lois LaPorte,
sister in-law Virginia Hodge, sister in-law Marjorie
Cary and her husband Jack, sister in- law Janie
Bonner and her husband Tab and brother in-law Billy
Garraway. Howard is also survived by several nieces
and nephews as well as numerous great nieces and
nephews.
A special thank you for all their help to both the
staff at the St. Francis Hospital Cardiac Unit and
the Racing With Jesus Ministries, Reverend Don
Rivers.
Calling hours will be Wednesday February 1st from
3:30pm to 7:30pm followed by a brief memorial at the
John F. Tierney Funeral Home, 219 W Center Street,
Manchester, CT 06040.
Burial will be at the convenience of the family.
Messages of condolence for the family can be left at
the John F. Tierney Funeral Home website
www.tierneyfuneralhome.com.
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Source:
Prepared by Polly Reid
Posted:
January 30, 2017 |
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