Howard “Hi” Luft Jr. was born May 7, 1951, in Lewiston to Howard and Joice Luft.
He spent his childhood in Lewiston, and he played baseball at Lewiston High School. Hi attended Lewis-Clark State College for a brief period before he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He married Diane Tarola before shipping out to Vietnam in 1971. Their daughter, Kari, was born later that year. After 20 years of military service, they came home to Lewiston. They later parted after 25 years of marriage.
Naomi Gustin came into Hi’s life and they were married Aug. 19, 1997, and he gained a son, Matthew Gustin. Hi and Naomi moved to Elk River, where they spent the rest of their days together. Naomi preceded Hi in death in 2012. Hi stayed in Elk River and celebrated a second retirement from the postal service.
He passed in his home Feb. 17, 2020. Hi was preceded in death by his parents, Howard and Joice, and his wife, Naomi.
He is survived by his daughter, Kari (Steven) Plank, and his stepson, Matthew Gustin, along with three grandchildren, Damen Neff, Savannah Neff and Cloe Plank; and his siblings, Deana (Cliff) Campbell, Jolene (Dave) Campbell and Robert (Brigette) Luft. There are too many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins to list here.
Please join us for a celebration of life at 2 p.m. March 1 at the Lewiston Eagles Lodge. Bring a dish for the potluck. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Wounded Warrior Project in his name.
