Howard Strom's Obituary
Howard Francis Strom May 15, 1921 – Jan. 29, 2010 Resident of Castro Valley Howard entered into rest on January 29, 2010. He was born in Fountain, Minnesota. He was preceded in death by his parents, August and Ida Strom, and his loving wife of 42 years, Helen Strom. He is survived by his children, Daryl Strom of McKinleyville, CA, and Dane Strom and wife, Robin Strom of San Lorenzo; three grandchildren, Eric Strom, Jimmy Strom and Valery Strom; and 1 great grandchild, Kaitlyn Strom. After high school, Howard left Minnesota for Los Angeles and soon after enlisted in the Army Air Corp. In 1943 he was sent to the Pacific where he flew 79 missions in P38s and was promoted to Captain. Howard logged in over 8,000 hours and became an “Ace.” After retirement from the Army he married Helen O’Brien in 1948. Howard entered the scrap metal business and traveled to Guam where their first child was born. In 1958 he was employed by the Lerner Co. and worked as manager of their San Francisco yard. In 1967 Howard and Helen built a car wash in Castro Valley. In 1977, he worked for Lavin Metals Corp. in San Jose as a buyer until he retired in 1985. He managed his car wash until his illness in 2003. Howard was secretary and treasurer of the ISIS and a board member and treasurer of Northern Cal, car wash association. He loved hunting and the outdoors, and was quite social and hardworking. He will be missed by those who were fortunate enough to have known him. A viewing will be held on Mon., Feb.8 from 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm with a Funeral Service on Tue., Feb 9 at 10:00 am at Chapel of the Chimes, 32992 Mission Blvd., Hayward CA 94544. Chapel of the Chimes 510-471-3363
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