Chuck Howe

Chuck Howe was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1931. The family,
which included younger son John, moved to Westerville, Ohio in
1937.
At the conclusion of World War II, the family moved to Joplin,
Missouri. Chuck graduated from Joplin High in 1948 where he
met his future wife, JoAnne Blanke. He attended Rice University
(then Rice Institute) from 1948 to 1952, majoring in Economics
and graduating Phi Beta Kappa and one of ten Outstanding
Seniors chosen by a faculty-student board.
At graduation, he was Commissioned Ensign in the U.S.
Navy, stationed in Long Beach, California, but returned briefly to
Joplin to marry JoAnne who then accompanied him to Long
Beach where Chuck’s ship, minesweeper U.S.S. Redstart, was
stationed. The honeymoon was short-lived since Chuck’s ship
departed for Korea in December, 1952, returning to the U.S. in
June, 1954.
Chuck enrolled in the Economics Ph.D. program at Stanford,
receiving the degree in 1958. With two children added, they
moved to Purdue University where Chuck was Assistant
Professor of Economics in the emerging Krannert School of
Management where he taught Management Science.
At that time, Chuck also began research in the water
resources field, producing a book on the Economics of Inland
Waterway Transportation that was published by Resources for the
Future in Washington, D.C. In 1964, JoAnne, Chuck, and now
four children, took a temporary post at the University of East
Africa in Nairobi, Kenya, sponsored by the Rockefeller
Foundation’s University Development Program to help build the
program in Economics. Chuck continued water research with
management studies of the Tana River Basin in northeastern
Kenya.
On the basis of Chuck’s water research, he was invited in
1965 to join the staff of Resources for the Future as Director of
the Water Resources Program. The family moved to D.C. where
they lived until 1970 when Chuck was appointed Professor of
Economics at the University of Colorado-Boulder.
Chuck was appointed a Fellow of the American Geophysical
Union in 1973 based on his water research and a Fellow of the
Association of Environmental and Resource Economists in 2012.
He was the principal author of the 2007 Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that was awarded
the Nobel Peace Prize.
Chuck and JoAnne, with whatever children were at home or
able, continued to travel, both for work and for pleasure. They
lived in Indonesia, Holland, and England, and traveled more to
countries on every continent.
Chuck was an avid runner, having competed in more than 30
Bolder Boulder (10K) races as well as several Crescent City
Classics in New Orleans. While in Indonesia he was part of the
Hash House Harriers running group.
After this accomplished career, Chuck and JoAnne retired to
Frasier Meadows Retirement Community in Boulder, where they
became a valued part of that community for over 20 years. Chuck
died March 3, 2024, and is survived by his wife of 71 years;
children John, Karen, Bo (Conway), and Kathy (Larry); seven
grandchildren: Theron, Sarah, John, Ray, Morgan, Lauren, Luke;
and one great-grandchild, Addison.
The family extends special thanks to all the staff of the
Summit Care Center at Frasier for their devoted and loving care in
the last year of Chuck’s life. Their dedication is remarkable.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Frasier
Meadows Retirement Community. There will be a Celebration of
Life on Friday, April 12 at 2:30 in the Eldorado Room at Frasier.
All are welcome.