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Charles P. “Tony” Howard, 69, of Kalkaska, formerly of Traverse City, passed away on Monday, October 11, 2010 at Munson Medical Center. He was born on July 26, 1941 in Carrizo Springs, TX to the late Graham Parker and Ruby Lee (Wilson) Howard.Tony grew up riding and roping on a ranch in west Texas. He graduated from Crane High School in Crane, Texas in 1958. Tony served his country proudly in the US Army from 1968-1970 and was stationed in Germany for 2 years. He married the former Cynthia M. Coates on April 11, 1997 in Traverse City. Tony worked in the oil fields for 52 years, starting right out of high school when he busted out in the oil patch in Texas. Tony worked overseas in Libya, Tripoli, and Singapore traveling with his family for 4 years. After returning to the states, he worked for Cactus Drilling Company, Dart’s, and then in 1971 he joined T.D. Provins in Mt. Pleasant. Tony and his partner Dwain formed CH & P Drilling in Traverse City and designed and built rigs and equipment all over Michigan. Tony owned a snowmobile and four-wheeler business in the U.P. for 7 years while still consulting in the oilfields where he worked up until his death. Tony loved snowmobiling, four-wheeling, traveling, and hanging out with friends. Tony enjoyed spending time with his wife at their cabin in the U.P. He was always working on fixing whatever needed fixing and he could fix anything. In recent years, Tony liked remodeling houses and selling them. He was a great father to all of his children and was always on-call for their many needs and long talks. Tony was highly respected and very forgiving. He was known to say, “You learn a lot more when you listen”. Tony’s grandchildren were the joy of his life and he loved being Grandpa. He was raised in a faithful Baptist family where the church was very important. Tony raised his family the same way he was raised, with strong beliefs and faith in our Lord and Savior. He was a very strong person and was always looking out for everyone around him. Tony will be deeply missed by his family and his many friends.He is survived by his wife Cynthia; his children, Kim Scott of Big Lake, Tammi (Bob) Smalley of Mt. Pleasant, Shane (Stevy) Wilkes of Traverse City, and Brandon (Shauna) Wilkes of Kalkaska; his siblings, Larry Howard of Midland, TX, Carol Krist of Hamilton, TX, and Laura (Harvey) Howard of Hamilton; his dear friend Chloe; his 7 grandchildren, Shawn, Jena, Tyler, Autumn, Gabriel, Lily, and Grace; and 5 great-grandchildren.Tony was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Harry David Howard.A memorial service will be held at noon on Thursday, October 14th, with visitation from 10 a.m. until service time at Wolfe-O’Neill Funeral home in Kalkaska. Pastor Matt Moser of the Calvary Baptist Church will be officiating.In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Tony may be sent to: Energy Education for Michigan, Inc., 124 W. Allegan St., Ste. 1610, Lansing, MI 48933 marked for the Tony Howard Scholarship Fund to endow for an annual scholarship award for students pursuing an energy related career.Arrangements are being handled by Wolfe-O’Neill Funeral Home, our family serving yours.

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Charles "Tony" Howard

July 26, 1941 - October 11, 2010