Sergeant First Class Merideth Leigh Howard was born July 2nd, 1954, in Corpus Christi, Texas. She was an only child who loved the ocean and dreamed of becoming a marine biologist before deciding against the career due to her seasickness. She graduated from King High School in Corpus Christi, Texas. She then graduated from Texas A&M University and worked as a firefighter in the late 1970s, becoming the first woman firefighter in Bryan, Texas.
Later, Sergeant First Class Howard moved to California and became a fire protection specialist in the Bay Area. She joined the Army Reserve in 1988, enlisting as a Medical Repair Specialist. She met her future husband, Hugh Hvolboll, a fireworks manufacturer, in 1991. Sergeant First Class Howard joked, “You set them off, and I’ll decide how much damage they cause.”
They moved to Waukesha, Wisconsin in 2004 and were married in 2005, when Sergeant First Class Howard was called to Active Duty. She completed the Mobilized Civil Affairs Course at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and deployed in 2006.
Initially, Sergeant First Class Howard’s duties consisted of clerical and administrative responsibilities. She succeeded in this role but itched to get off base, go on missions, and engage with the Afghan people. Her roommate, Air Force Technical Sergeant Felicia Mason, said, “She wanted to do everything. She wanted to be able to excel in everything. Because she didn’t want anyone to say she couldn’t do it because she was a woman.” Eventually, Sergeant First Class Howard did get the opportunity to serve in civil affairs.
Sergeant First Class Howard was assigned to the 405th Civil Affairs Battalion, Pleasant Grove, Utah. She loved the work and in August 2006 was considering extending her tour. On September 8th, 2006; however, Sergeant First Class Merideth L. Howard was killed in Kabul, Afghanistan when an improvised explosive device detonated in the vicinity of her Humvee. Staff Sergeant Robert Joseph Paul was also killed in the attack. Howard was survived by her husband.
Howard’s husband Hugh Hvolboll said of her, “She gave the shirt off her back to help each and every friend she had. She is greatly missed by her family and friends across the country.” Her cousin, Lorraine Stevenson, said, “She was one of the sweetest people I’ve ever known. I never heard her speak ill of anyone.”
In Afghanistan, Sergeant First Class Howard visited an area on base known as Home Depot, which stored wood, often, and took on multiple do-it-yourself projects, including an armoire, a side table, and an unfinished picture frame, the last of which was made of Afghan carved wood she procured at a bazaar.
Sergeant First Class Howard rarely ever talked about her age in life, but it became notable after her death; at 52, she was the oldest woman to be killed in combat since the Korean War and likely in the entire history of the country. She also had knee problems for years before deploying. Yet, when called upon to serve, Sergeant First Class Howard answered. Her uncle, Herbert Kurtz, said, “She was a competitor. She was out to win.”
Sergeant First Class Howard was cremated, with half of her ashes being scattered in a fireworks display with those of her parents, and the other half being scattered during a fireworks display in San Francisco.
Sources:
https://honor365.org/sfc-merideth-l-howard/
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15697371/merideth_leigh-howard
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/at-52-soldier-was-distinctive-in-how-she-lived-and-died/
https://www.mercurynews.com/2006/12/29/honors-set-for-womanwho-died-in-combat/
https://arsof-history.org/fallen/2006_howard_merideth.html
https://thefallen.militarytimes.com/army-sgt-1st-class-merideth-l-howard/2099559
https://www.aggienetwork.com/media/guides/texas%20aggie/inmemoriam/sgt-merideth-howard-76.pdf
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