Howard Lester Moore

Howard Lester Moore was born in St. Joseph, Missouri on November 28, 1938 to Finis Keithley Moore and Undine Zorah (Shrader) Moore, joining his older brother, Keith. Howard's family moved from town to town around the Midwest, landing in communities like Hannibal, Missouri, Davenport, Iowa, and Nehawka, Nebraska. According to Howard, he and Keith were adventurous and somewhat mischievous companions in childhood, once swimming across the Mississippi River – and back - without their parents' knowledge. Howard referred to his academic record as unremarkable, but he did enjoy swimming at the YMCA and playing quarterback as a freshman on the Nehawka football team.

In his sophomore year, the family moved ~ taking Howard under protest ~ to Orange, New South Wales, Australia. Howard excelled in swimming and diving in Australia, winning many trophies and proving that the Aussies were not as good at swimming as they claimed to be. The local newspaper put it like this: "At the All District Swim meet yesterday, a 13 year old Yank beat us at our own game." Howard was recruited by a local swimming club that traveled around Australia to competitions during summer vacation. He also played Rugby League football and said he was happy just to have survived that experience! Thanks to a motivated and dedicated History teacher, Howard's academic record improved and he graduated from an Australian High School a year earlier than his Nebraska classmates, so he begged his parents to let him return to Nebraska where he lived on his grandparents' farm and rejoined his old classmates for another senior year of High School.

Shortly after graduation, Howard joined the US Marine Corps and was stationed at 29 Palms, the world's largest Marine Base, located in the Mojave Desert of California. In the Marine Corps he was a trained MOS 2533 Radio-Telegraph Operator, assigned to the 75th Millimeter Artillery Battalion to communicate with Marine Corp pilots. On a visit to the town's public swimming pool, Howard was observed diving by a Marine Corps Officer who paved the way for him to be accepted by the All Marine Corps swimming team. Howard and his team from the desert embarrassed the Navy team by "swimming away" with most of the first place trophies at the 11th Naval District Championship. Among the diving judges at that Meet was the famous Olympic diver and Gold Medal winner, Dr. Sammy Lee. Howard considered it an honor and a highlight of his swimming experience to compete before Dr. Lee. Shortly after that lofty experience, Howard's military career ended with an honorable discharge from the Marine Corps.

Howard's post military career began as a stockroom clerk in a Chicago drug store. From that humble beginning, he was recruited for a drug store Manager position in California. Thereafter, he was hired as an Assistant Manager, working his way up to Director of Operations for a chain of 33 drug stores located in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Palm Springs, finally selling all of those stores and moving on to a triple expansion of a new health food store chain. Howard's business acumen was attracting attention and friends brought him on board to assist with their endeavors, first as a consultant for a bed and bath wholesale business and then as a dry goods buyer for a very large and successful retail outlet. After all that excitement, Howard decided on a slower pace and started a new business, a wholesale interior decorating warehouse outlet and, on the side, he operated a retail carpet and window covering business.

A few years into his successful career, at the age of 33 in November of 1970, Howard had the thrilling, life changing experience of dying and, yes, being reborn as a new creature in Jesus Christ. Howard said that "Jesus Christ came into his life and jostled him around from pillar to post until he finally started realizing that Jesus was the One in charge, that all of his success was just filthy rags, and that he now had a new boss ~ the most powerful Man to ever be born on planet Earth."

Howard married Martha Ann Wendling in California and they lived in Oxnard. When Martha Ann started having some health issues, she expressed a desire to move to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Howard sold his businesses, and they bought one hundred acres on Stove Prairie Road west of Bellvue, Colorado. They named their acreage "Jubilee," symbolizing their new beginning. Soon enough Jesus led them to Bethel Baptist Church and the Body of Christ they had always longed for and had no idea that they were missing. Howard was considering retirement after the move to Colorado, but after a few months hanging around the house, Martha Ann asked him to go find work. So Howard started a window covering business with a showroom in Laporte that thrived until he retired at age 75.

Howard was always immersed in Bible Study, personal and public. He worked for the Billy Graham Crusades in Los Angeles. At the Community Christian Church in Oxnard, California, Howard served as Deacon, Sunday School Teacher and Principal of the Community Christian Elementary School. Howard was the Superintendent of a 1,000 enrollment Sunday School at Bible Fellowship Church in Ventura, California and was also a Leader in Bible Study Fellowship for 12 years. Here, at The Bridge Church, Howard faithfully served as Deacon and New Horizons Sunday School teacher for over 35 years, only to be stopped by cancer. Howard loved God's Word and he tried to return to teaching at The Bridge but determined instead that Jesus had to have some alone time with him to get him ready for eternity.

Howard passed away peacefully at the Pathways Hospice Inpatient Center on January 28, 2026 at the age of 87. He was predeceased by his wife, brother and parents. Interment will be next to Martha Ann in the Roselawn Cemetery in Fort Collins. A remembrance and celebration of Howard's life and homegoing to his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be held at The Bridge Church, 833 S. Taft Hill Road, Fort Collins, on February 2, 2026 at 2:00 pm.