Ralph Howard, Jr.

Ralph Forrest Howard Jr. was born on March 11, 1947 and left this earth peacefully at his home May 10^th to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Ralph was loved, respected and cherished by his soul mate Robbi.  They were blessed to have 58 years on this earth together and one day will be reunited for eternity.  The love they had goes beyond words. He always said his greatest blessing was his two sons John and Michael.  He treasured every moment with them, watching them play ball, laughing and arguing with them.  His goal in life was to guide his sons to be good, honest Christian men.  He accomplished this with no question.  28 years ago a wonderful young lady, Corey, joined our family.  She began as his daughter-in-law but quickly became his daughter bringing joy and happiness into his life.  No words can ever express the love he showed his family. He treasured his 7 grandchildren: Faith, Noah, Jackson Isabella, Matt, Nick and Alex and delighted in his great grandson Eli and great daughter in law Sydney.  The many memories and wisdom he leaves behind will be with them forever as guidance throughout their lives, leaving them a legacy of dignity, love, kindness and honesty. His granddaughter Faith would always say that is “MY” Pawpaw.  They all felt he was their one and only pawpaw. He was respected and loved by all who knew him.   Ralph served his country in the Navy during the Vietnam conflict, graduated from LSU with honors in quantitative methods.  He worked for Blue Cross for 28 years.  He loved to fish and play golf with his sons, friends and best friend Robbi.  He was stricken with a rare illness 22 years ago and showed great dignity, never complaining, just asking the Lord to give him strength to handle the burden he had been given.  He was our Hero.  He was preceded in death by his father and mother, Ralph and Evelyn Howard, his cherished brother Roy, grandparents Acker and Voyed Howard, George and Annie Hawthorne, his father and mother in law Frank and Lee Heath. His private graveside service was held May 20^th at Resthaven Gardens of Memory.  The family would like to thank Pastor Randy Fontenot for helping us through this most difficult time.