The Passing of Howie Leifer

Howie Leifer was one of my great childhood friends. I went to his Facebook page tonight because we never failed to wish each other a Happy Birthday and his birthday would have been tomorrow (January 24) only to learn that he had passed away on January 5 from what a friend on Facebook said was cancer.

Howie was one of my best friends in my formative years and because he moved to our neighborhood (Laurelton, Queens) from Manhattan at the age of 9, he knew everything about life. He taught us about sex, how to correctly throw a baseball, and how to be a patriotic American when our nation participated on the international sports stage.

He didn't go to college immediately after high school  but after college he went on to become a renown puppeteer and art teacher. He had literally thousands of Facebook friends from around the world and it amazed me to read how many people truly loved him.

The last time that I saw Howie was at a Jackson High School reunion about 10 or 12 years ago. We did  periodically email each other from time to time.

Howie idolized his brother who was the great sports photographer, Neil Leifer and any time Neil asked Howie for a favor, you could bet that Howie was right there for Neil. In fact, Howie managed Neil's photographic collection.

I guess it is normal to cry when you lose a piece of your life. Howie will be missed by everyone who knew him.