Sylvia Howell

1918 - 2015

Sylvia Rios Howell

On the evening of May 21, 2015, Sylvia Rios Howell known for her fiery personality and passion for conversation passed away from this world of natural causes. She was 97 years old.

Sylvia lived a remarkable and adventurous life. Born in David, Panama, she was one of six children. Having lost her father Felix at a very young age, she was raised primarily by her mother Petra "Petita" Rios. As a young woman, Sylvia moved to the Canal Zone in Panama where she met her husband Clyde Howell, a young Naval Officer from Mississippi. During their marriage Clyde and Sylvia lived in several places before finally calling Pensacola their home.

Throughout her life, Sylvia was blessed to have many close friends and neighbors that brought her tremendous companionship and love even in her final years. She always remembered fondly her time working at the San Carlos Hotel and Perdido Bay Country Club and was immensely proud of the two grand-daughters she and Clyde helped to raise. Sylvia will be most remembered for some of her favorite things like afternoons shopping at the Corey Field Commissary, curling up in bed with the latest issue of her favorite tabloid magazine, countless hours talking on the telephone, her collection of orchards, and her love of Las Vegas.

She is survived by her three children Louis, Dixie, and Irma; grandchildren Brian, Michelle, Keith, Patricia, and Carmen and niece Nohemi who never left her side in her final days. Sylvia is preceded in death by her parents and siblings, daughter Celeste, and her husband Clyde.

Memorial services will be held later this summer when Sylvia's ashes will be interned at Barrancas National Cemetery alongside her husband.

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