HR0415 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0415 LRB101 12577 MST 60995 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Oren "Lou" Lowder of Springfield, who passed away on May 8, 2019; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder was born on March 18, 1925 in Virden; he always liked to say he came in with a bang, as the date of his birth was also the date of the most devastating tornado in the history of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder was born in the heart of coal country into a generational coal family; he was also born on the eve of the Great Depression, when life was a struggle, work was hard, and wages were meek, at best; at the age of 3, life got even harder for his family when his father was killed in a coal mine accident; left widowed with three children to raise, his mother moved the family to Springfield, where she found work and shelter managing boarding houses; and

WHEREAS, Although Lou Lowder never remembered living in the Virden area, he was proud of his Virden roots; he would tell stories of the many times he would take the train to visit his family who remained there; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder's mother worked in boardinghouses in downtown Springfield, where she cooked and cleaned in exchange for a meager salary and room and board for her and her family; his family believes that living among so many different people coming in and out of the boardinghouses helped to instill in him a sense of inclusion and hospitality that remained with him throughout his life; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder attended St. Agnes Grade School and Cathedral Boys High School, where he made deep friendships and developed a lifelong love of sports; he loved to say that his most memorable athletic achievement was being knocked unconscious for over 24 hours by a 300-pound tackle from Spaulding; his teammates always blamed him for losing the game, even though they won it 43-0; he also boasted that he was back on the field the very next week to help beat their archnemesis, Springfield High, 13-6; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder graduated from high school in 1943; two weeks after graduation, driven by his sense of honor and duty, he boarded a train with his best friend, Joe Knox, and entered World War II; there was not a time in his life that he was prouder of nor more guarded about than the 32 months he spent in the Navy during World War II; he spent most of his tour as a Gunner's Mate First Class aboard the USS Walter C. Wann, a destroyer escort; after assignments along the Eastern Seaboard, the North Atlantic, and the Caribbean Sea, they entered the South Pacific War Zone, where he earned six Battle Stars; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder fought in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, considered to be the greatest naval battle in history, where the Walter C. Wann's sister ship was sunk by a 16 foot Japanese battery; he later fought in the Battle of Okinawa, the costliest naval battle in American history, and, although his ship was heavily damaged by a Japanese kamikaze pilot, it did not sink; and

WHEREAS, After the war ended, Lou Lowder stayed with the Walter C. Wann as "Gun Boss" until it was mothballed in Long Beach, California; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder re-enlisted in the Navy during the Korean Conflict, serving nearly a year supplying the main air transportation supply base in Tulle, Greenland, north of the Arctic Circle; and

WHEREAS, Serving in war during his formative years had a lasting impact on Lou Lowder; his commitment to duty and country was unimpeachable; he was a man of honor, a loyal patriot, and a fierce proponent and defender of our armed forces; until the end, he was a military man and proud of it; and

WHEREAS, After returning home from World War II, Lou Lowder's commitment to community and his sense of duty drew him to a career in the Illinois State Police; over the next 28 years, he served in a variety of roles, including as a road trooper, a member of the Executive Security for Governor Stevenson, a Shift Sergeant, a member of the first statewide Staff Inspection Team, a member of the Academy staff, an Area Commander, a First Executive Officer, and, finally, as first Deputy Superintendent of the entire Illinois State Police, the first to achieve the rank of Lt. Colonel; he also served as the first Illinois State Police Legislative Liaison Officer; and

WHEREAS, As proud as Lou Lowder was of his military service, he was equally proud of his beloved State Police; he had immense pride in being a law enforcement officer and a graduate of the FBI National Academy; he never stopped being a trooper and spent his life committed to helping those who could not help themselves; and

WHEREAS, After 28 years with the State Police, Lou Lowder turned to his other passion, Motor Vehicle Laws; he served as Executive Director of the Motor Vehicle Laws Commission; during his 6 years as Executive Director, the Commission advised both legislative chambers in matters of traffic safety and motor vehicle licensing and regulation; and

WHEREAS, After the commission was abolished in 1983, Lou Lowder served as Traffic Safety Consultant to Governor Thompson, and, from 1984-1990, he was Highway Safety Advisor to Jim Edgar; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder became one of the foremost national authorities on motor vehicle law; he became the National Chairman of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrator's Committee to establish Uniform Standards and Criteria; in that capacity, he traveled extensively around the country conducting meetings and public hearings, which led to the Uniform Commercial Driver's License Act; and

WHEREAS, In 1990, after a career rooted in duty, honor, and a commitment to community, Lou Lowder retired; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder always believed we had a duty to each other and an obligation to better our community; for many years, he was an active member of the Knights of Columbus, always answering the call when help was needed; in 1980, he was named the Knight of the Year at Council 4175; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder was a man of deep faith; he was a devoted Catholic and a proud member of the St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish; when the church decided to include more lay people in their service, he volunteered to be one of the first Eucharistic Ministers and lay lectors; he coached the CYO basketball team for 13 years; he served as chairman of the Parish Council, chairman of the Men's Club, and chair of the Education Committee; he served with his wife June as co-chair of the Fall Festival and led two parish fund drives; he was most proud of serving as a ground maintenance volunteer for 15 years; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder loved the sport of boxing, believing it offered not only an outlet for pent up aggression but also provided youth with an opportunity and a means to discipline their lives; he was an active member of the Illinois Golden Gloves for 40 years, serving as director of bouts, president, and franchise holder; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder was a proud member of many organizations, including the Eagles, the Illinois Police Association, the VFW, and the Northend Democrats; when asked to serve his community, he never said no; he believed that we are only as strong as the community in which we live and that we all must work together to improve that community; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder's military, professional, and volunteer careers were indeed storied ones, but he will be remembered most for the family that he and his beloved wife June created; he met June Ruffing in the Spring of 1949 while they were both working for the State of Illinois; it must have been love at first sight, because they were married on October 22nd of that year; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder and June spent 70 years providing the solid foundation upon which their family is deeply rooted; they had seven children, losing their first born, John Oren, not long after birth; they have since seen that family grow by 15 grandchildren (having lost a grandchild, Shawna, at the age of 5) and 19 great-grandchildren, with another on the way; and

WHEREAS, The sense of inclusion and hospitality instilled in Lou Lowder early in life opened his family to hundreds of others who have merged their lives with those of his family, sharing in joy, celebrating triumphs, and, as now, helping each other through tragedy; and

WHEREAS, Lou Lowder taught his family never to turn from open arms or refuse a handshake, to show respect to those around you, and, most importantly, to love your family above all else; and

WHEREAS, Though Lou Lowder may be gone, he will live on in the physical embodiment of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren and in the memory of those who have shared their lives with him and his family; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Oren "Lou" Lowder and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Lou Lowder as an expression of our deepest sympathy.