Howard O Towle

Guilderland - Howard O. Towle, 88 of Guilderland, passed away Thursday, November 1st after a short illness.Howard was born in Brooklyn, NY, son of Margaret and Robert Towle.He was the loving husband of Gloria Towle, devoted father of Gloria Towle-Hilt and Deborah Towle Marcil and sons-in-law, Robert Hilt (deceased) and Roger Levinthal of Guilderland, respectively.He is survived by his sister, Margaret Caristo; brother, John Towle; his four grandchildren, Laura Towle-Hilt, David Towle-Hilt and his wife Mary Towle-Hilt, Elizabeth Hulihan and her husband, Matthew, Emily Marcil, and his two great grandsons and many nieces and nephews. Those who loved Howard, knew him as a man with a great sense of humor and willingness to help others.After his beloved Dodgers left Brooklyn, he became an avid New York Mets fan. He never lost faith or hope that they would one day become a baseball superpower.He served in the U.S Merchant Marines as a seaman during WWII. Following his military service, he worked as a general foreman and supervisor for Cerro Wire in Maspeth, Queens.After retiring and relocating to Guilderland with his wife, Gloria, he became a parishioner at Saint Madeleine Sophie Parish and began a career of community service.In retirement, he served the community as a volunteer at St. John's Outreach Center in Albany where he worked tirelessly in the food pantry and soup kitchen.People in the south end of Albany knew him as a compassionate and caring volunteer who devoted many hours as a collection counter at Saint Madeleine Sophie Parish.Howard's many random acts of kindness warmed the hearts of his neighbors as they awoke to a newly mowed lawn or snow blown driveway.His grandchildren appreciated his never-too-busy attitude of dropping anything he was doing to help with the smallest or largest of challenges from home-repair to car maintenance.He challenged all to be the people they needed to be. As a communicant of St. Madeleine Sophie Church in Guilderland, he assisted in many parish ministries.Howard will especially be remembered for his kind, gentle, and generous spirit. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Tuesday, November 5 at 6 p.m. at St. Madeleine Sophie Church at 3500 Carmen Road (Rte. 146), Guilderland. Calling hours will precede the service from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the church.In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the St. John's Outreach Center, 88 Fourth Avenue, Albany, NY 12202, in Howard's honor. Online condolences may be made at www.demarcostonefuneralhome.com