Vivian G. Howes' Obituary
Vivian Graham Howes, 99 years, passed away at the Hospice House, Ft Myers, Florida, June 7, 2012. She is survived by her daughters, Martha (Pattie) Carcaba of Ft. Myers and Roberta (Bobbie) Littlefield and Bobbie’s husband, James Littlefield of Blacksburg, Virginia, and by her grandchildren, Timothy Carcaba of Houston,Texas, Jeannette Richter and her husband Ted Richter, of Ft. Myers, Fla.,?áLorian Kyle of Charlotte, N.C.. Shana Criner and spouse, Reg. Milbank of Blacksburg, VA and Shana’s two children, Dustin Rowland and Caitlin Criner, also by her sister-in-law, Sarah Louisa Prado of Vero Beach, Florida, her nephew Bill Prado, and niece, Louisa Zokvic.?áVivian Howes was born to Bertha and Abner Cameron, June 24, l913 in New Castle, Pennsylvania. She and her siblings were adopted by their beloved stepfather, Archie Graham. The day after her high school graduation, at age 16 years, she came to Orlando, Florida with her brother, sister and twice widowed mother, fondly known as “Muz”.?áThere, she was married to William C. Howes, October 15, 1932.?áBill Howes was descended from a long line of sea captains, so it was no surprise that he had enlisted in the U.S. Navy Reserves in l929 at age 17yrs. When WW II broke out, he transferred to regular Navy and the family began its many military moves to various assignments in Florida, Virginia, Rhode Island, Japan and eventually, in l960, back to Florida at Green Cove Springs where he and Vivian retired. Vivian lived with Bill Howes for seven years on their thirty-seven foot sailboat, Ichiban, a Tahiti Ketch, cruising the Bahamas and Virgin Islands while they awaited the completion of their future house site and back yard boat slip in Cape Coral, Florida. Eventually they moved inland to Ft. Myers when it still resembled a rather quaint town.?áVivian worked for the U.S. Army, during WW II, as a cryptographer when it was discovered she had a special ability to decode enemy messages. Interestingly, Bill also worked as a cryptographer for the Navy Department and received recognition for “breaking” the Japanese code. Vivian was known for her positive outlook and fun loving approach to life. Well into her nineties, she enjoyed word puzzles (not too surprising), visiting and cooking for relatives and friends, playing and teaching Bridge and telling stories about her adventures on the “high seas” with Bill. Vivian was preceded in death by Bill Howes, her husband for 62 years, by her sister, Thelma Blanchard of Florida and her brother, Jim Graham of Virginia, also by her niece Maria Prado Moore and by her good friend and brother-in-law, Arthur Prado of Vero Beach, Florida. In lieu of flowers, a gift may be made to a favorite charity of choice.
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