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Obituary

Respected lawyer was softy for strays

SEYMOUR L. HONIG: 1932-2005. Mr. Honig "must have had 15 stray cats that he fed regularly.' He balanced family, law and his love of animals.

By MARTY CLEAR
Published April 22, 2005

BEACH PARK - Longtime Tampa lawyer Seymour L. Honig built a successful and influential law career. He represented every kind of client and argued every kind of case before county judges and even U.S. Supreme Court justices in 1974.

But more than anything else, his wife knew him as a man who enjoyed helping others.

"He just loved to help people," Renate Honig said. "He did everything he could to make people happy, to do the best he could for people. It just the kind of guy he was."

He died Saturday (April 16, 2005) of natural causes. He was 72.

His passion for helping didn't end with people. He was also known for his love for animals.

"He didn't believe in killing anything," Mrs. Honig said. "He was a vegetarian and he would feed any stray."

Longtime colleague Tom Rutherford called him a "brilliant lawyer, well-versed in all aspects of the law," who had a fondness for strays.

"He must have had 15 stray cats that he fed regularly," Rutherford said. "It kind of drove us all crazy."

Honig met his future wife in Germany during World War II. She had no intention of ever leaving until she met Seymour, a young U.S. Army officer from Brooklyn, N.Y., who was stationed in Germany. She was reluctant to go out with him - he was an American, after all - but finally agreed.

When he returned to the United States three months later, his young German bride was with him.

"I fell in love with him, and then I fell in love with America," she said. "He was a very special person."

The couple settled in Tampa, where Mr. Honig worked his way through Stetson University College of Law. Upon graduating, he went into private practice. He tried criminal cases and toward the end of his career specialized in personal injury cases.

Although he was an accomplished trial lawyer, one of his proudest achievements was being named Boss of the Year by the Tampa Legal Secretaries Association.

The Honigs lived in Beach Park, where Mrs. Honig still lives. They raised two children, Carl, who now lives in Orlando, and Catherine, of St. Pete Beach.

Mr. Honig was always involved in his children's activities and was especially devoted to their education. He had a hunger for knowledge that never abated, his wife said. He loved to read, especially books about history and philosophy.

When he wasn't in his library reading - usually with his beloved Dalmatian, Dalton, curled up at his feet - Mr. Honig spent much of his free time running. Even in his 60s, he regularly competed in half-marathons.

His family has requested that memorial donations be made in his name to the Dalmatian Rescue of Tampa Bay or the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary.

[Last modified April 21, 2005, 08:33:10]