Howard G. Lee's Obituary
Retired Naval Aviator Lieutenant Commander Howard G. Lee, 97, took his final flight to be with the Lord Thursday, September 10, 2015. Twenty year old Howard Lee joined the U.S. Navy in 1938. After Basic Training he was assigned to Pearl Harbor as a Naval Photographer. While on leave and hitching a ride back aboard the Oil Tanker USS Neosho, Lee’s life changed forever. The date was December 7, 1941 and the USS Neosho was on Battleship Row and located between USS Oklahoma and USS California. After surviving the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Seaman Lee requested and was accepted into flight training, becoming a full-fledged enlisted pilot in the U.S. Navy. During the remainder of WWII, he flew PBYs in the Mediterranean. Just before the war ended, he became a commissioned officer and spent the next 15 years at many different locations, flying many different planes. Retiring after 22 years of service, he moved to Memphis and began his career as a Stockbroker. In 1960, he joined First Baptist Church, where he served his church as a deacon until his death. After the death of his wife, Virginia, he married Katherine Fredericks. They were able to enjoy life together traveling the world without moving due to a military assignment. LCDR Lee spent countless hours speaking to over 300 different groups about Pearl Harbor, the importance of the military, and delivering his main message, “Freedom isn’t free, it’s been paid for by hundreds and thousands of people who died here and over-seas”. He served as president of the Pearl Harbor Survivors’ Association for many years. He was a life member of both the Retired Officers Association and the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, FL. LCDR Lee was preceded in death by his wives, Virginia Cartwright Lee and Katherine Fredericks Lee. He is survived by his step son, Dr. Harold Fredericks and his wife Susan and grandchildren, John Pierce Fredericks and his wife, Katelyn, Katherine Ann Fredericks, and Benjamin Tate Fredericks. The family will receive friends from 12 p.m. until his service begins at 2 p.m. Monday, September 14 at First Baptist Church, 200 E Pkwy N, Memphis, TN 38112. Entombment to immediately follow with full military honors at Memorial Park Mausoleum.Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5668 Poplar Ave. Memphis, TN 38119, “Celebrating Life… Behind the Stone Wall”
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