Howard F. Kurth, 83, of Holland, Ohio (formerly a lifelong resident of Swanton, OH) died at ProMedica Ebeid Hospice, Monday, May 17, 2021, from complications he endured after a 33 minute cardiac arrest & month long hospital stay in late December 2020.
Amazingly enough, after pulling out his own breathing tube a week post arrest – his children were “allowed” to spend the afternoon with him and his mind was fine and all enjoyed the afternoon together watching the Cleveland Browns!
Howard was born at his family home at 123 Harrison Street in Swanton, Ohio on October 23, 1937, to Frank and Grace (Sperling) Kurth and was the youngest of their 8 children.
Howard learned a hard work ethic early on in life, becoming a caddie at Valleywood Golf Course and manually setting pins at the Swanton Bowling Alley as a young boy. He was an amazing bowler early on in life and was part of several bowling leagues before he was 18. Also achieving that perfect 300 game!
Howard graduated from Swanton High School in 1955. After graduation he served in the US Army, where he was a mailman. He also became a mailman at the Swanton Post Office retiring after 38 years.
After retirement he and his wife Dorothy spent a lot of their time babysitting many of their grandkids. The grandkids were very blessed to have such special sitters!
Howard married Dorothy (Pethe) Perkins May 15,1965 and together they raised their three girls along with Dorothy’s 2 young sons in Swanton, Ohio. Howard’s love for his hometown was always very obvious. His vast knowledge of many things Swanton, Ohio was truly amazing, and oh, the stories he could tell!
So the saying goes … “Once a Bulldog – always a Bulldog”! He often referred to Swanton, Ohio as “God’s country”!
Howard loved to putz in his yard and was a perfectionist about his lawn. In fact he spent all last fall re-doing his lawn by hand after Dorothy’s death. He would measure the distance between flowers he would plant to be sure they were in exactly the right spot!
Trimming the backyard bushes at their family home on Elm Street was always interesting – he used strings and stakes to be sure he got it cut just perfect!
Howard loved all things to do with high school sports, always inquiring with his caregivers “where home was, and what sports did you play”? He rarely missed his kids or grandkids sporting events. He was a longtime Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns fan.
Left to cherish his memory are his three girls Cathy Yeager, Barb (Sue Treece) Kurth, Judy (Scott) Graeff, son Richard (Marty) Perkins and daughter-in-law Nancy Perkins; grandchildren, Dayna & Robby Perkins; Laura Wertz, Heidi Perkins & Betsy Gardner; Abby, Mary & Molly Yeager; and Adam, Allison & Benjamin Graeff, along with eight great grandchildren. He is also survived by his only living sibling, Marilyn Joanne Henricks; several sisters and brothers in-law and many many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his wife Dorothy & son Robert Perkins; his parents; sisters Anna Jean Kern & Esther Vaughn; brothers Harold, Donald, Jim & Tom Kurth.
The family would like to thank his many doctors and caregivers, especially those who helped him along the way since his cardiac arrest. Dr. Felix Boecker and Dr. Jihad Abbas of ProMedica Wound Care (the care and compassion from these two fine doctors was just AMAZING!), Dr. Jamey Ruiz, Dr. Ben Simonton, Dr. Tom Cox , Dr. Michael Abowd, many of the ProMedica Cardiology doctors, and many staff members and doctors of McLaren St. Luke’s Hospital, especially Bernadine from their Infection Control Department.
Howard was unable to walk after his cardiac arrest following his month long hospital stay as he was suffering from multiple pressure wounds. He chose Swanton Health Care on Munson Road for his rehab, where he received excellent care from the many many staff members. We always felt like they treated him as family, missing him each time he was back in the hospital.
Visitation will be held Monday, May 24, 2021 from 5:00 until 8:00 PM at Weigel Funeral Home, 204 Chestnut Street, Swanton, Ohio. Burial will be private.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Swanton High School Athletic Department.
Online expressions of sympathy may be made at www.weigelfuneralhomes.com