HOWARD - A. Purdy 89 of Lawtons, NY, passed away at Mercy Hospital in S. Buffalo, NY. He was the son of Walter A. Purdy and Louise M. (Gerber) and was born in Hamburg on May 8, 1930. He is survived by his loving wife of Marilyn R. (Schwartz) of Hamburg, NY married in 1965. He is also survived by his sons. Christopher ( Mindy) and Michael Purdy. Grandfather of Beau, Gabriel, Lucita and Ritarose. Howard was passionate about auto racing and found success building and racing supermodifieds from the late 1950'sto the early 1970's. he raced in Canada at the Canadian National Exhibition and in several tracks in USA including Lancaster, Oswego and Pocono. The well known "Little Deuce" had many successful years with drivers including Bentley Warren and Ron Lux. His pit crew included long time friends Robert Hodgson, Sonny Wilkinson, Fritz Klein and Jerry Sullivan. He founded Purdy Ford of Gowanda, NY in 1967 and owned and operated it until 2000. This was one of the greatest joys of his life and he had great appreciation for many loyal employees who made this possible. His other business interests included Lakeshore Ford of Fredonia and Campland RV in N. Collins. Later in life he turned most of his time and attention to his family and his farm, including his angus Cattle and quarter horses.