Bill Howells

I was born January 30, 1949 in Hanover Pennsylvania. Hanover is a small town famous for the Hanover Shoe Farms Standard Bred Trotting Horses. I was the second child in my family with a sister who is two years older than me. My mother was of German descent and my father was of Welsh descent. My grandfather was born in Wales. As a young child, I survived several serious ilnesses. I contracted diptheria and scarlatina which is a mild case of scarlett fever. However, as you can tell, I survived both. I was the typical youth of the period. I liked to play football, basketball and baseball. No soccer back in those days. I had a coach in Little League baseball who instilled in me the love for the game. He had no children but gave his time to teach us how to play. He was tough but fair and spent numerous hours teaching us the fundamentals of the game. I loved it! In the summer the guys in the neighborhood would go down to the sandlot field in the morning and play some baseball. We would all then head home for lunch and come right back for another game after we ate. Same thing after supper. Boy did we have fun!

Photo of Santa's house on the square in Hanover Pa. courtesy of my friend Henry McClin

I was a pretty good student and was fortunate to have some excellent teachers who cared about their students and did all they could to make sure that we were ready to go out into the world. Sometimes like any red blooded boy, I would get into trouble and the principal would have to bring out the paddle. Yes in those days they still used the paddle. When I was being good, mom and dad would take me to see a Baltimore Orioles baseball game where I got to see some of the greats like Brooks Robinson, Mickey Mantle and many others. I continued playing baseball in High School as my love for the game continued to grow. However, at this point in my life I also discovered the fairer sex and it showed in my grades. I did mange to graduate in the top 10% of my class though so it was off to college. I attended Temple University in Philadelphia Pennsylvania with all intentions of becoming a doctor. Alas, the thrills, sights and sounds of the big city got the better of me and I forgot to go to class so off it was to the United States Navy.


Temple...

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In January 1970 I left for boot camp at Great Lakes Naval Station in Illinois. Boy was it cold there in January. After graduating from boot camp and a short visit home, I left for Avionics "A" School in Memphis Tennessee. After about 8 weeks of school, they shipped me off to Attack Squadron 37 "The VA-37 Bulls" at Cecil Field Florida outside of Jacksonville. Our Squadron flew A-7 Corsair II Light Attack bombers and we were attached to the Carrier U.S.S. Saratoga. In 1971 I went on my first cruise aboard the Sara. We patrolled the Mediterranean Sea on a 6 month deployment making stops in italy, Greece, France and Spain. It was a wonderful experience and one that I probably wouldn't have gotten to enjoy if it weren't for the Navy. Then in April 1972 we were deployed to West PAC and left for Vietnam. A year that I will never forget as we were gone exactly one year and out of that year, I set foot on dry land 52 days. In between deployments, I played on the squadron's baseball team keeping in touch with my love of the game. In April 1974, I left the Navy and returned home to Hanover Pennsylvania.

As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image used here is in the public domain.

In between college and the Navy, I worked for my father who owned a moving and storage company. I learned how to properly lift furniture to save your back and also to pack a truck so the furniture doesn't get damaged in transit. both of these skills have proven useful as I have gone through life. After the Navy and three months of unemployment, my dad said that it was time for me to get a job. Since there was a Navy Base about an hour away from where I lived, I thought that I would give that a try. Little did I know at the time that it would become my life's work as well as the place where I would meet my future bride. In October 1974, I was hired at the Ship's Parts Control Center in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania where I worked until December 2005. During that time, I served as a provisioner, a program manager, a branch head, a division director, a department head and finally as the deputy director of the Ship's Support Directorate managing the supply chain for the Navy's surface fleet. I was awarded two Meritorious Civilian Service awards. Early in my career I played softball on our department's team. Not the same as baseball but when you get a little older, a little slower and a little heavier something has to give. It was here that I met my wife. We fell in love at an Oriole's baseball game down in Baltimore, Md. We got married and had two wonderful boys who have made us very proud.

So we have come full circle. I am now retired but still coaching baseball. I love the game, the sound of the ball coming off of the bat, the duel between pitcher and batter, the smell of a leather glove, feeling the seems of the baseball on your finger tips, getting a field ready to play, taking care of the equipment and on and on and on. But mostly, I love being around the young men who play the game, trying to teach them the proper techniques, watching them grow as players and individuals and providing a positive influence in a young man's life every now and then. I hope to be doing this for a long time to come. My sons are now grown...No grandkids yet. But if I can, I will hold on until they do and then maybe I can coach them too. Wouldn't that be a hoot!