HOWARD LANDER

Howard R. Lander, 81
Veteran, USAF
November 15, 1943 - April 24, 2025

Howard loved people. And did he have a knack for talking to anybody. There was no such thing as a 5-minute trip to the corner store with “the mayor”; you’d better plan for an hour of serial schmoozing. And it was just this gift that helped him, a young man with a challenging background from the small town of Wilkes-Barre, PA, to find success in Philadelphia as a developer. The kind with his shirtsleeves rolled up and carrying as many 2x4s up the stairs as the biggest guy on the job. Of course, he’d often say, “I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up.” But that’s how he saw the world: endless possibilities, but also uncertainty. Ultimately it was in his family he found meaning, and his deep sense of responsibility to them saw him through the chaos. And always, his bedrock and daily practice: Judaism. And so it was no surprise that for decades, the Lander home was the raucous epicenter of holiday gatherings of family and friends.

Privately he said his most meaningful work was helping others. “Privately” because this was not conspicuous “do-gooding.” Instead it was; supporting a friend of a friend with disabilities through school, giving work opportunities and other assistance to people trying to straighten their lives out, helping aspiring artists and entrepreneurs with free storefront space and mentorship, and scores of other gifts of time, money and consideration we’ll never, ever know about. If you asked him “why?” he’d tell you, “I’ve been fortunate in my life,” then pause for a moment, lost in the thought of all the other roads his life may have taken him down. Then he’d one-arm hug his nearest kin and say, “Not everybody has been as lucky as me,” with a twinkle in his eye.

He is survived by his children and grandchildren; David (partner Ailey) and Joy (husband Michael, children Ella and Jackson). He is predeceased by his beloved wife Andrea.

Funeral service will be held at 1pm on Tuesday, April 29 at Ohav Zedek Cemetery in
Hanover Twp, PA.

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