Richard Howard

Bergen – Richard Allen “Dick” Howard Sr. , 86, of Bergen, passed away on Monday, December 1, 2025 at home with his family.

Dick was born Monday, June 5, 1939 in Rochester, New York, the son of the late Harold E and Beulah (Robertson) Howard.

Dick grew up in the city of Rochester alongside his cousins, sister and brother. In his younger years he would go with his cousin Robert “Bobby” Klein and watch the trains on the NY Central Line as they passed under the Main Street Bridge. He spent much time at his Grandfather Chauncey Howard's store in the city. He would visit his parents at the Monroe County Hospital where they worked together and one winter he and Bobby got to see the actress Ingrid Bergman as she skated on one of the frozen ponds while she was staying in one of the small houses on site while her husband was studying at the University of Rochester. One of Dick’s fondest memories as a child was riding along with his father Harold as he drove busses for the Rochester Transit Corporation, the predecessor to today’s RTS. During his youth in Rochester Dick attended Rochester Public Schools ending with his sophomore year at John Marshall High School.

In the summer of 1955, now with 3 children (Dicks sister Jeanne was born in 1943 and brother John was born in 1954) the Howard family moved to a small farm along the Erie Canal in Holley after Harold took a job as a mechanic at Duryea Ford in Brockport. That year is when Dick began attending Holley High School which is where he met the love of his life, Barbara Ann McGee. After graduating from Holley in 1957 Dick decided to attend the NY Vocational and Tech School at Alfred, now known as SUNY Alfred. He studied for a degree in Animal Husbandry which he received in 1959. Shortly after graduating from Alfred, he married Barbara on August 22, 1959, and they moved into the married student housing just off campus as he was employed at the college farm. To pay for his way through college and then support his new wife he worked at the college dairy barn and at the bowling alley in the village. There were times that money was tight, and he would do things such as putting water on his morning cereal to save a little. On June 30, 1960, Dick and Barbs first child, son James Oliver Howard was born in Hornell NY.

Ever the type to want to lean as much as he could, Dick decided after graduating from Alfred that he wanted to pursue a degree in a Dairy Management. He first applied to Cornell University, but they were unwilling to accept his credits from Alfred, so he continued searching. Then in 1961 the family packed up, left Alfred and move to Athens, GA so he could attend the University of Georgia which was smart enough to accept his credits from Alfred and accept him as a student, which was quite the loss on the part of Cornell. It was there in Athens on October 28, 1961, when the couple’s second child, daughter Deborah Ann Howard, was born. A story that Barb loved to tell, and Dick would always verify, was that she was an early civil rights activist as she refused to be seen by a doctor until after the African American woman in active labor in the hall was attended to first.

After graduating from the University of Georgia in 1963 the couple moved back to Holley into the home of Barbara’s mother while Dick worked at various dairy farms in Western NY and the Finger Lakes region. The couple welcomed a 3rd child, daughter Cynthia Ann Howard, on May 21, 1965, in Brockport NY. Shortly before her birth Dick received a job offer that would lead to a lifetime career. In 1965 Dick took a job with the US Department of Agriculture in the Farmers Home Administration. His first appointment was to the Jamestown area which is where the family moved to. Their last child, son Richard Allen Howard Jr. was born in Jamestown on April 24, 1967. From there they eventually moved to what would be the family homestead for many years, a small farm in the tiny hamlet of North Norwich in Chenango County. The farm would eventually grow, including a neighboring piece of property of 125 acres consisting of fields and woodlands. While living in North Norwich Dick and Barb became very involved with the community, Dick joined the local Fire Department and with partners (who are also brothers) Leonard and G.R. Jones, purchased a former feed mill which they opened as Canalside Auction, Antique and Tent Rental. In 1978 Dick was transferred to the newly opened Rochester office of the FmHA and the family settled in the Village of Bergen the following year in the house that Dick and Barb would make their home for the next 45 years. They held onto the 125-acre parcel in North Norwich until the late 2000’s.

In 1994 Dick retired from the FmHA ad the head of the Rochester office. The decision to retire was multifaceted. One reason was he wanted to spend time with his growing number of grandchildren, which at the time numbered 4 with another on the way. Another reason was that the FmHA was being rolled into the Rural Development Agency, creating one streamlined service from the Department of Agriculture. The final reason, which we did not know of until recently, was that he was being offered the role of the Director of the RDA, a position that would have required him to move to the Washington DC area to work in the headquarters of the USDA. In his words “I was tired of moving for them”. So, after 29 years of service (33 after you add in his accrued vacation and sick leave) he chose retirement, well, his version of retirement.

In his retirement Dick would take on many roles, professionally, civically, and personally. In the professional setting Dick went to work for NY FarmNet and Rural Opportunities. For these 2 Agencies he did the opposite of what he did for many years with the USDA. Instead of foreclosing on family farms he worked diligently with the farmers to restructure their finances to help keep them going. On the Civic side of life, he held a position on the Village Zoning Board and offered assistance in any way he could with various organizations. On a personal level he took on a major role in his grandchildren’s lives. Whether it was sporting events or field trips or just special functions, he and Barbara always found time to participate.

Dick is survived by not only the family that is listed below, but also by the many generations of farmers he helped over the years, the communities he gave his time to and the people he helped lead and mold in his many dedicated years of government and community service.

Surviving are his children, Deborah (Donald) Fogg of Bergen, New York, Richard (Sarah) Howard Jr. of Hopkinton, Iowa, Cynthia (Dean) Leffel of Batavia, New York; and 9 grandchildren, D.R. Fogg, Devin Fogg, Amanda Chadsey, Joshua Howard, Daniel Neal, Matthew Neal, Abigail Regan, Racheal Smith, and Benjamin Howard; 16 great grandchildren, as well as a surrogate daughter, Maria (Rob) Rowland, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Surviving is his brother John (Laurie) Howard and Dick’s children, Deborah (Donald) Fogg of Bergen, New York, Richard (Sarah) Howard Jr. of Hopkinton, Iowa, Cynthia (Dean) Leffel of Batavia, New York; and 9 grandchildren, D.R. Fogg, Devin Fogg, Amanda Chadsey, Joshua Howard, Daniel Neal, Matthew Neal, Abigail Regan, Racheal Smith, and Benjamin Howard; 16 great grandchildren, his wife’s beloved hairdresser and surrogate daughter, Maria (Rob) Rowland, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

In death Dick is reunited with his wife Barbara (McGee) Howard, son, James Howard, parents, Harold E and Beulah Howard and sister, Jeanne Knobloch.

Arrangements are under the care and direction of H.E. Turner & Co., Inc. Funeral Home in Bergen. Burial and celebration of life will take place in the Spring of 2026.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Dick’s memory to Hospice of Orleans, 14080 NY-31, Albion, NY 14411.