Howard William MacDougall

Howard W. MacDougall, formerly of James Island, died Wednesday July 2 in Scottsdale, Ariz., after a long illness. He was 78. Mr. MacDougall retired in 1990 as executive news editor of the Evening Post after more than 43 years in the newspaper and advertising business. Born in Philadelphia, Pa. and raised in southern New Jersey, he was a son of the late Howard A. and Myrtle E. Bealer MacDougall. He graduated from Collingswood NJ High School in 1947 and began his journalism career writing a high school sports column for The Retrospect, a weekly newspaper in Collingswood. In 1948 he started work as a messenger in the advertising department of the Courier-Post newspaper in Camden, N.J. After a military leave for active duty in the U.S. Navy, he returned to the Courier-Post in 1950 and worked in the advertising department and business office. In 1953, while still working daily in the newspaper's business office, he became a South Jersey stringer for the Philadelpia Inquirer, a post he held until he joined the editorial staff of the Courier-Post in 1955. He was city editor when he resigned in 1971 to join a Cherry Hill, N.J. advertising firm. He later opened his own public relations firm and for a brief period was owner, editor and publisher of the weekly Camden NJ County Times. In 1976 he moved to Charleston and joined the news staff of The News and Courier as a copy editor. In 1977 he was named news editor and in 1980 he became the metropolitan editor. He supervised about 24 reporters and news bureaus in Columbia, Georgetown, Florence and Washington, D.C. He continued in that post when the news staffs of The News and Courier and The Evening Post were combined in 1981. In January 1990 he was named executive news editor of The Evening Post and he retired from that position July 1 of that year. He was a life member of the Clan MacDougall Society of North America, the Scottish Society of Charleston, Lutherans for Life and the Moorestown NJ Lutheran Home Auxiliary. He also held memberships in the Society of Professional Journalists and the Philadelphia Press Association during his newspaper career. In addition, he was a member of Squadron 147, Sons of the American Legion, James Island; Christ Church-Lutheran, Phoenix, Ariz.; the National Ataxia Foundation and the International Lutheran Laymen's League. He was a former member of Grace Lutheran Church, Summerville. He is survived by his wife, the former Marjorie J. Deering of Scottsdale; two sons, David W. Kathy of Charleston, S.C., and the Rev. Steven A. Cheryl, of Red Bud, Ill.; a daughter, Joyce Schrank the Rev. Jeffery of Phoenix; five grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. Known to friends and family alike as "Mac," he will be remembered most for his great smile and wonderful sense of humor. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him. His battle with the illness of spinocerebellar ataxia prevented him from living in the way that he would have liked but his courage and faith were evident to all during these past months. We rejoice in the truth of the resurrection and knowing that Mac is now enjoying his "mansion" lovingly prepared for him by his heavenly Father. Relatives and friends of the family are kindly invited to attend his Visitation Wednesday 10-11AM at Martin Luther Chapel, 4100 Terrace Ave. Pennsauken NJ 08109 Pennsauken, NJ 08109. Funeral Service 11AM. Interment Lakeview Memorial Park, Cinnaminson, N.J. Memorial contributions may be made to Martin Luther Chapel, 4100 Terrace Ave. Pennsauken NJ 08109; or Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E Flower St., Phoenix, AZ 85014.

Howard William MacDougall

July 26, 1929 - July 2, 2008