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Howard

Howard Appell
About Howard

Howard Appell was born April 5, 1949 in Rochester, NY. As a child, Howard lived in assorted urban and suburban neighborhoods in Monroe County as well as rural and village locales in Allegany County, NY.

He graduated from Greece Arcadia High School in 1967 and the University of Rochester in 1971, the latter with a Bachelor of Science degree in geology . He was employed as an assembler of rock, mineral and fossil specimen collections by Wards Natural Science Establishment between 1968 and 1973.

In an unsuccessful effort to improve health and safety conditions at his place of work, Howard associated with the IUE and Teamsters unions. After being terminated at Wards, he was represented by the National Labor Relations Board and was awarded a settlement.

In 1973, Howard relocated to family property in northern Allegany County, where he resides to this day. Howard met and married Cheryl Halbach in 1976. Today the couple have seven children and 14 grandchildren. He and Cheryl built their home and, for many years, raised dairy goats.

Through 1989, Howard had assorted occupations: selling and delivering firewood in Buffalo and Rochester, delivering rental and medical equipment, carpentry, playing hillbilly music and, briefly, OTR trucking. In 1984, Howard began doing substitute teaching, and he returned to college at Houghton and SUNY Geneseo, obtaining high school certification in general science, earth science, physics and mathematics. However, he taught only a single year, 1986-87 at Scio Central School.

In 1989, Howard became deeply involved in the movement in Allegany County which opposed New York State’s proposal to construct a nuclear waste storage facility at a site near his home. He was the organizer for the group of musicians which composed and played original protest music at rallies and on cassette recordings. He also wrote for protest newletters published by the Concerned Citizens of Allegany County and the ‘North Nine’ counties.

Howard eventually published two editions of his own magazine, ‘Land, Life & Liberty’,  for which he wrote, solicited editorial and advertising content, printed and distributed.

In December of 1989, Howard was hired by local newspaper publisher Donald Sanders to write stories for the Sanders weeklies:  Sanders’ successors were John Bruno and later Andrew O’Byrne, under whom the chain went out of business.

In 1995 Howard was hired by Corrin Strong to write for the rival Lake & Valley Clarion, where he stayed for ten years. Howard completed his journalism career with The Livingston County News, retiring in 2014.

Howard has been an organizer and performer for the Long Point Park Fiddlers Picnic and other shows sponsored by the Livingston County Council on the Arts. Since 2014, Howard and Cheryl have been spending the winter months in Lake Worth, Florida.