IN MEMORIAM
Karaian had strong ties to MEHA and served as president of the association from 1963–1964. In 1997, MEHA created an award in his name to honor his dedication and longstanding service. The award recognizes an individual, organization, or agency for out- standing contributions to and support of the practice of environ- mental health in Massachusetts. Karaian was the first recipient of the award, which continues to be awarded annually by MEHA. Source: Vartkes “Vic” Karaian obituary, www.giragosianfuneral- home.com/obituary/vartkes-vic-karaian
After retirement, Rowe was active in his community, providing leadership to several di¡erent local boards and associations. He was also a faithful member of Washington Street United Method- ist Church, serving on numerous committees and cofounding the Active Faith Ministry. Rowe dedicated his life to service—whether it was farming, pro- tecting the environment, fighting to preserve freedom, enriching the community, or ensuring that each individual be a¡orded basic human rights. Source: Richard Keith Rowe obituary, www.dignitymemorial. com/obituaries/columbia-sc/richard-rowe-11239424. Photo cour- tesy of Andre Pierce.
Richard K. Rowe Richard K. Rowe passed away on April 8, 2023. Born on January 11, 1945, in Lime- stone, Tennessee, he worked on his family’s dairy farm until he earned his under- graduate degree from East Tennessee State University. After graduation, Rowe was
Janet Williams Janet Williams passed away on February 21, 2023, at the age of 66. Her career in envi- ronmental public health spanned more than 30 years at local, state, and federal levels. She began her career as a field investigator in Kansas City, Missouri, and went on to ascend to a leadership position as the district supervisor. In this position she managed sta¡ who were responsible for enforcing
commissioned as an ocer in the U.S. Army and served as a ranger with the 82nd Airborne in Vietnam where he earned a Purple Heart. After his military service, he returned to East Tennessee State Uni- versity and obtained his master’s degree in environmental health. His career in environmental health started at the South Caro- lina Department of Health and Environmental Control. In 1989 he was promoted to the position of environmental health director in Raleigh, North Carolina. He finished his professional career as the director of environmental services for Wake County, North Caro- lina, where he retired in 2007. Rowe was an active member of NEHA. He was a lifetime mem- ber and joined NEHA in 1972. He went on to be a regional vice- president for 4 years and was elected as a national ocer in 1981. He served as the president of NEHA from 1984–1985. Rowe was also the recipient of the Walter S. Mangold Award in 1988, the highest honor bestowed by NEHA. Rowe was a strong leader. He understood the challenges envi- ronmental health professionals faced but did not allow those challenges to deter his work or diminish his passion. Further, he was a strong believer in the collective power of the people within the profession and of NEHA’s potential. This belief was demon- strated in his final President’s Message column in the May/June 1985 issue of the Journal of Environmental Health : “I do know we have a lot of problems but I don’t see any of them as insurmount- able if we work on them as a group. Attacking separately means we do not have coordination nor do we have direction to our final accomplishments. Environmental health people nationwide will have to band together, synchronize, communicate, and promote as a unified organization. The National Environmental Health Association is the forum in which all of these things can be car- ried to fruition.”
local regulations. Williams then accepted a supervisory environmen- tal public health specialist position for the state of Missouri and man- aged sta¡ who were responsible for conducting contract Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspections, administering comprehen- sive and statewide environmental activities and programs, and train- ing local regulators within five eastern Missouri counties. Williams went on to work as the division director for the Envi- ronmental Protection Division within the St. Louis County Depart- ment of Health. She led a division of five branches with over 125 employees and managed an annual budget of over $18 million. She managed, organized, planned, directed, and coordinated an array of environmental programs. Williams also provided fiscal stew- ardship for general revenue funds, permit fees, and contracts and grants for operational programs in air quality, food inspections, milk and dairy, solid waste, recycling, lead, healthy homes, vector control, animal control, and rodent control. The next step in her career was with FDA. Williams served in various positions within FDA in support of the Oce of Training, Education, and Development (OTED) with the Oce of Regula- tory A¡airs (ORA), namely the Division of Programmatic Train- ing. She has served as a training specialist, branch manager, and was promoted to division director in 2020. She had an unwavering dedication to the mission and strategic goals of FDA, a gift for part- nering across ORA and FDA, and a keen aptitude for coordinating e¡orts to provide high-quality learning opportunities to not only FDA sta¡ but also state, local, tribal, and territorial partners. Williams was a member of NEHA for over two decades and earned her Registered Environmental Health Specialist/Registered Sanitarian
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June 2023 • Journal of Environmental Health
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