Michael John Howell

Michael John Howell, born 03 September 1953, unexpectedly passed away on 10 November 2022.  An avid hunter, fisherman, and man who truly enjoyed being in the serene wilderness, he only held one higher devotion of his time, energy, and love: to his family.  He was a patient, supportive, present, loving, father and husband, which was where he truly excelled in life.  This often went quietly unobserved by most, which was just fine by him. 

Mike was born to John & Marilyn Howell (Clark) in Hollywood, California. He was raised by his mother after his parents’ divorce when he was a young child, which led to him finding joy in the outdoors, as time spent outdoors was time spent not doing chores.  After graduating high school, he met the love of his life, Marilee Murray, in Los Angeles and they were married in June of 1978.  Shortly thereafter, longing for the wilderness that was evaporating around Los Angeles, they moved to Utah to start a new adventure. 

Upon arriving in Utah, Mike quickly found an opening at a dream job of his and began a 37-year career at Browning in Morgan, Utah.  Starting by sanding bow limbs, ultimately working his way up to Assistant Plant Manager for Browning Archery, he plied his love of shooting and hunting into his work, amassing an archival knowledge of firearms, bows, and gunsmithing by his retirement in 2015.

While Mike loved shooting, hunting, and fishing all over the western US, he always unequivocally loved one thing more: his family.  The one thing Mike prided himself above the competitive shooting championships or successful hunts was being there as a father to his kids.  Without a waver or complaint, he put in the long hours; helped with school projects, made it to every athletic event, meet, school concert, before or after-school practice, always with an enthusiastic smile and a hug, win or lose.

Mike was preceded in death by his son Jedediah Howell, his wife Marilee Howell, his mother Marilyn Clark, and his father John Howell.

 Remaining here are his three children Rhett, Amanda, & Zach, his granddaughter Bea, cousin Alex Clark, stepmother Jackie Howell, her daughters Terry & Cathy, and his mother-in-law Dorothy and her children Colleen & David. 

A wake & celebration of life will be held from 5-8 pm on Sat, 3 Dec 2022 at Leavitt’s Mortuary in Ogden, UT. 

In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to the Henry’s Fork Foundation to help preserve one of Mike’s most beloved wild places on this Earth.