Howard Laurence Householder

Howard "Howie" Laurence Householder, 85, of Noblesville, passed away on Thursday, January 1, 2026 at Heritage Woods of Noblesville. He was born on June 13, 1940 to George and Helen (Kessler) Householder in Janesville, Wisconsin.

A natural and gifted athlete, Howard ran track and was a competitive swimmer throughout school, serving as Janesville High School’s Bluebird Natators swim team captain and taking 3rd place at state his senior year; he competed in breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, and all the medley events. As an adult, he continued swimming with NASTI—the Noblesville Adult Swim Team.

Howard was an avid deer hunter and took both of his sons hunting with him when they were young. Legend has it that in November, 1966, he was so excited one morning before a hunt that he got sick yet still harvested a 12-point buck that same day—a fact later proved with an old, yellowed newspaper photo. An avid golfer at Pebble Brooke Golf course—where he was known as “HoJo” and worked there after his retirement—he made a hole-in-one at the Pebble Brook North Course on May 8, 2012 on Hole 16 at 120 yards.

Howard proudly served in the United States Marines and worked as a food sales representative for many years before retiring. Passionate about food, he was awarded the “Purveyor of the Year” in Indiana and was featured in newspapers along with his gourmet club of friends where his work with chocolate recipes was noted.

For many years, Howard and his late wife Nancy were Florida snowbirds in Destin where he often golfed with his good friends at the Indian Bayou Golf & Country Club. He was a member of the First Christian Church in Noblesville.

He is survived by his sons, Chadmon Householder and Ryan (Deanna) Householder; step-grandchildren, Gage and Lila; sister, Georgia Dietz; brother-in-law and groomsman, Stu Johnson; sister-in-law Vicki (Mark) Degarmo-Jackson, brother-in-law Bruce (Tamara) Degarmo, several nieces, nephews, and cousins; and his close Bridge Club Family.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 58 years, Nancy Householder; sisters, Patricia Fleming and Donna Johnson; and brother, James Householder.

He lived his life to the fullest.

We would like to thank all caretakers, nurses & doctors, including the staff at Heritage Woods of Noblesville and Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center for all their support and care of Howard & Nancy over the years. They adored the staff and loved talking with them daily.

Celebration of Life services with military honors will be held at 12:00 pm on Thursday, January 22, 2026 at First Christian Church of Noblesville, 16377 Herriman Blvd. with Rev. Jeff Castetter officiating. Visitation will be from 10:00 am until the time of service at the church.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Hospital, honorees of the FedEx St. Jude Championship golf tournament: https://www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude-today.html?sc_icid=header-btn-donate-now

Condolences: http://www.randallroberts.com

CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE à la HOWARD

* 2 quarts fresh strawberries

* 24 ounces chocolate cream

* 2 9” round chocolate cake layers, preferably pudding cake

* Semi-sweet chocolate

For chocolate cream:

* 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

* 16 ounces whipping cream

To make chocolate cream: Melt chocolate in double boiler over simmering water, until completely melted. Add whipped cream and stir until incorporated. Cool to room temperature, refrigerate. Twenty-four hours before planning to serve, whip chocolate cream in a chilled bowl until firm peaks are obtained, then chill.

Prepare two 9” round chocolate cake layers and chill.

About 1½ hours before serving, clean strawberries, cut in half and sweeten with sugar to taste.

To prepare dessert: Cut each layer of cake in half to equal four 9” rounds. Place one round on a cake plate, spoon strawberries on top, and spread with chocolate cream. Continue layering as above. Top with additional chocolate cream and shaved semi-sweet chocolate and whole strawberries.