Norvil Howell

Norvil Earl Howell, age 94 of Clovis, New Mexico, passed away on April 18, 2026, in his home surrounded by family. A celebration of life service will be held on Monday, April 27, 2026, at 3:00 pm, at Central Baptist Church, 2501 North Norris Street, in Clovis, with Father Simon Carian officiating. All family, friends, and former students and colleagues are invited to the service.

Norvil was born on October 25, 1931, to Earl Alfonso Howell and Gwendolyn Coffey in Independence, Kansas. He attended elementary school in Sedan, Kansas, then his family moved to Artesia, New Mexico where he attended school for his junior high and high school years, graduating in 1950. He attended Eastern New Mexico College, which became Eastern New Mexico University, where he earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, in 1954 and 1959.

Norvil married Elaine Dillard on August 8, 1964, in Clovis, New Mexico, and resided there for nearly 62 years. Norvil and Elaine had two sons together: John William Howell, born May 24, 1971, and Mark Alan Howell born on February 10, 1974. They are immensely proud of their boys.

Norvil is known for his sense of humor, love of family, strong work ethic, musical excellence, and dedication to the thousands of students he served.

As a child, Norvil remembers conducting singers and guitar players in church. One of his early childhood performances was singing a Gene Autry solo for a rodeo. When he entered the 6th grade, he wanted to be in band, but at the time his family could not afford to rent or buy an instrument. So, his first band director offered to let him play a school owned mellophone that was green and had been soldered many times. A year later, his father bought him his first horn. Toward the end of World War II, his family moved to Artesia, New Mexico. Norvil got involved in playing jobs around the area. By this time, he was playing the trumpet and with the war still going, he played Taps for many soldiers coming home to rest. After his high school graduation from Artesia in 1950, he attended college and always knew that he wanted to be a band director. In order to attend college, his parents co-signed a bank loan for one hundred dollars. He worked to pay that loan and had to take out a loan at the beginning of each semester until he earned his degree. During his first year of college, his father passed away and he had to drop out of school and return to Artesia to help support his family. He worked at the Post Office until he was able to return to Eastern the next fall. Throughout his college career, Norvil played in various groups performing in nightclubs and roadhouses.

After graduation he was hired in Muleshoe, TX to teach beginning band, junior high school band, high school choir, junior high choir, and high school band. Muleshoe had a six-period school day with one planning period. Norvil chose to do his planning outside of the school day and asked the superintendent if he could teach at the black school, as Muleshoe had segregated schools. This was a testament to his work ethic and sense of social justice. Two years later when Norvil left Muleshoe for Clovis, several of these students followed him.

In the fall of 1956, Norvil accepted the band director position at Clovis High School in Clovis, New Mexico. Those familiar with the program today would be surprised to know the condition of the music program when Norvil arrived. However, it was one of the factors that drew him to Clovis. He wanted to go to a school where he could build a program. He started in 1956 with 45 students who rehearsed in a modified barracks building. Over the next 24 years, he built one of the strongest programs in the country, moving band participation from 45 to over 200. They were recognized as the outstanding band at several national contests, being selected to perform at the Mid-West Band and Orchestra Clinic and representing the state in a Presidential Inaugural Parade. Norvil surrounded himself with great junior high and assistant band directors and led using a team-teaching approach. He did whatever he could to help students become better, pursuing private instructors wherever he could find them. Combine this with weekly sectionals, a weekly full band rehearsal after school, aggressive teaching, and aggressive recruiting, you have his recipe for success. He simply did whatever he could to support kids in their learning and insisted others prioritize it as well.

In the early years, while maintaining his focus on concert band development, he put a lot of extra energy into the marching band. Clovis has had a long tradition of football excellence, and with such a strong focus on football, Norvil saw an opportunity to develop support for the band program through football halftime. With this approach, the town got excited about band for the first time.

During the 1960’s and 1970’s, band festivals like the Tri-State Festival in Enid, Oklahoma, and the Buccaneer Festival in Lake Charles, Louisiana, had reputations for recognizing only the very best bands. Most of the bands attending during these years were well polished and yet very few superior ratings were earned. It was through these events that Norvil began to build the national reputation of the Clovis band program. Norvil’s sense of justice and equality was put to the test on one of his early trips to the Tri-State Festival. The Clovis band was integrated, and they had stopped for a meal at a restaurant when one of his black students came to him and said that they had to eat in the kitchen. Norvil, in a very loud voice, stated they were leaving. About this time, food was coming to the window and was ready to be served. The manager asked Norvil what was wrong. Norvil told him that a waitress told his black kids that they had to eat in the kitchen. Norvil told him that he offended his students and they were leaving. This was his stance during a period of immense racial tension across the country. Although many who met Norvil knew of his humble spirit and kindness, they have also seen in him a fierce competitive spirit. A highlight for him was going to the Buccaneer Festival in Louisiana, where he wanted to come home with a superior rating. It was a tough competition. The judges refused to pick a winner for class 4A, so Clovis tied with Lake Highlands. In 1963, the Clovis band was en route to Los Angeles to perform for a Rams game when they learned about President Kennedy’s assassination. Events all over the country were being cancelled, even the American Football League cancelled their games. However, the National Football League did not, so the Rams game would take place. Another invitation to play for the Rams came in the 1970’s. The band got to perform with Pat Boone. The Clovis Band was also invited to play at the 1969 Mid-West Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago. This international event is probably the most prestigious band event in the country. The band couldn’t afford to fly to Chicago, so Norvil set to work trying to find a way to get his band across the country and thought of using the railroad. The Santa Fe Chief would come through Clovis from Chicago. So, Norvil called the local Santa Fe guy and asked if they could get two chair cars and a baggage car for the band to travel. He was told no. But Norvil knew that the custodian who cleaned the band hall at Clovis High School had a brother who was high up in the ranks at the railroad. After several months' wait, and through his custodian and his brother, Norvil was granted the opportunity to take the band to Chicago by railroad. He credits it all to his custodian. And in 1973, the Clovis band had the opportunity to march in President Nixon’s second inaugural parade. Norvil knew firsthand the value of building strong relationships with all people. The continuity of having a great director in the same school for 24 years not only gives the benefit of his connections but also allows for the joy of teaching multiple generations from the same family. At one point, there were over 20 Clovis band alumni who had gone on to teach band and many of today’s community leaders in Clovis are band alumni.

After 24 years of leading the Clovis band program, Norvil became the Music Coordinator for the district. Although he no longer was the Director of Bands, he did continue to stay involved in the classroom by teaching elementary band maintaining that direct connection to students was important to him. He served as music coordinator for 17 years. Norvil brought “Music in Our Schools Week” to Clovis as he pursued highlighting music from all levels and groups in the district. Norvil truly saw this position as a music advocate and in effect promoted the entire program in the same way he had been promoting the band. Also, during this time, the CBS Good Morning television show’s theme song was “Oh What A Beautiful Morning”. Following a suggestion made by Elaine, Norvil contacted the Amarillo CBS affiliate and arranged to have a 300-voice elementary choir sing this song. This type of national exposure was yet again another way Norvil put Clovis on the map, and famous for its music program.

At the same time that he became the music coordinator, he also started the Clovis Community Band and introduced an opportunity for those band students to continue playing their instruments. Oh! The fun they had playing at local events and doing concerts each year, some at Ned Houk Park, the Lyceum Theater on Main Street and Clovis Community College.

In 1994, he became the Executive Director for the New Mexico Music Educators Association. He held this position until 2003, spending countless hours serving all New Mexico musicians.

Norvil was the recipient of the ENMU Distinguished Service Award in 1969, NMMEA’s Music Educator of the Year in 1988, ENMU Outstanding Alumni Award in 1995, NMMEA Hall of Fame in 2001, and the New Mexico Activities Association Hall of Fame in 2004. His former students and members of the Clovis community have established a scholarship in his honor as well. A perfect tribute to Norvil, a fund that continues to help kids pursue their degrees in music.

It is of no surprise to his family that Norvil retired in 2003 as his son John and his family moved back to Clovis. With all of his accomplishments and accolades, Norvil’s greatest role was now of grandad to his two grandchildren, Jake and Hannah. His grandchildren remember fondly the countless hours spent in their backyard in the fort eating chicken wings, pretending to be pirates, playing croquet, and marching around the block as they played instruments along with Norvil who played his horn on their walk. He passed on to them his sense of humor and endless pursuit of telling a perfectly timed joke. He loved to pull pranks and passed on some of his favorite items to help: fake poop, plastic bugs, and the like. He had an entire drawer full of jokes he liked to use and funny clippings and cartoons to send out to others. HIs sense of humor held no bounds! Anytime a family member was in the newspaper, Norvil would cut it out and take it to Office Max to have it laminated and personally delivered to its recipient. The family joked that if anyone was ever to be in the Police Blotter section of the newspaper, he would cut it out and have it laminated as well. He was exceedingly proud of his family and worked hard to make sure all knew it.

Norvil served on the Vestry of St. James Episcopal Church after his retirement. He and Elaine were both very involved in their church home. Each Christmas and at Easter, he was asked to play his coronet during the service.

Norvil spent the last decade of his life caring for his wife, Elaine, in their home. He did everything he could to care for her. Together, they built a beautiful life.

Norvil continued to play his horn daily, even into the final week of his life. He played, “Bill Bailey Won’t You Please Come Home” daily for Elaine, even playing it at her service 11 months ago. He rarely missed an opportunity to play Happy Birthday for family members and friends alike and created a jazzy rendition that made everyone smile. Because that was what Norvil did - he made everyone smile. He made sure everyone knew that he loved them and told them each time he saw them.

Norvil is survived by son John Howell (Julie) of Clovis, NM; son Mike McClatchey (Diane) and family of Brownwood, TX; sister-in-law Carolyn McCombs and family of Novato, CA; two grandchildren Jake Howell (Avery) of Lubbock, TX, Hannah Howell of Plano, TX, and special caregivers Cassandra Linn, Faith Garcia and Karen Shealy. We’d also like to extend our gratitude to Gentiva Hospice for their care in the last weeks of his life.

Norvil is preceded in death by his wife Elaine Howell, his parents Earl Howell and Gwendolyn Howell; son, Mark Howell; and brother-in-law Jim McCombs.

Arrangements have been entrusted to Muffley Funeral Home, www.muffleyfuneralhome.com

(575)762-4435.

The source material for this obituary comes from an interview by a student of New Mexico State University in 2003. Author unknown. Many friends and family also contributed. We are sure that many more stories about his career and family abound.