Jerry Thomas Howard

Born in Oak Ridge, Missouri, Howard graduated from Central High School in Cape Girardeau, Missouri and from Southeast Missouri State University with a bachelor's degree in agriculture and biology. He has worked in the agribusiness and horse breeding fields, served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, and also served 16 years in the Missouri National Guard.^[1]

His wife Shirla Jean Rathjen Howard from Gouldbusk, Texas, died June 17, 2015, at the Howards' hometown of Dexter, Missouri. They had been married for over 40 years.^[2]