Howard Walderman

Howard Walderman, a daily practitioner of yoga for many years, has entered his final Final Relaxation (Savasana), appropriately referred to as "the corpse pose." He was born in Baltimore in 1938, the son of Rose and Joe Walderman and was the chief torturer of his dear younger sister, Ellen, who survives him. He is also survived by his beloved wife, Ruth, and devoted sons Eric and Adam (Julie) and treasured grandchildren, Ava, Talia, and Ben. He graduated from high school, somehow misnamed Baltimore City College, in 1955 where he played basketball and lacrosse. He graduated from Duke University in 1959 where he played lacrosse and graduated from the University of Maryland Law School in 1962 where he played bridge. Upon graduation, he served in the military and reserves. After a brief stint in private practice in Baltimore, Howard was an attorney with the General Counsel's Office of what is now the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for 31 years providing legal advice to the Public Health Service programs including air and water pollution programs, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. In what could be described as a storybook romance, in 1965 while strolling on the streets of Israel, he met Ruth and after borrowing enough for her airfare trip to Baltimore, they married and had a loving marriage for nearly 60 years. After retirement from the Government, he and Ruth traveled to Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Vienna, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, China, Peru and his favorite, the Galapagos Islands. Howard participated in the Senior Olympics and won numerous medals in swimming and tennis. He prided himself in bring a Maryland State Senior Olympic repeat gold medalist in the 500-yard freestyle in his 80's, reluctantly acknowledging that being the sole entry in his age category may have had something to do with it. He loved to laugh and make others laugh. He was an enthusiastic participant in the Washington Post's weekly humor contest, The Style Invitational, for over 25 years and proud of being part of the Loser Community, as participants are irreverently referred to. He was a believer in the value of this life rather than the afterlife and wrote this obituary, hoping to draw a few final chuckles.

A funeral service for Howard Walderman will be held on Tuesday, August 5th at 12:30 pm at the Columbia Jewish Congregation located at The Meeting House 5885 Robert Oliver Pl, Columbia, MD 21045. Burial service to follow at 2:15 pm at Columbia Memorial Park located at 12005 Clarksville Pike, Clarksville, MD 21029. Followed by a reception with refreshments back at The Meeting House.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be be made to Grassroots:

https://grassrootscrisis.org/donate/

Or Columbia Jewish Congregation:

https://columbiajewishcongregation.shulcloud.com/form/donations.