WILLIAM WATSON LOWREY JR.,
or Bill as his family and friends call him, passed away on one of his many adventures while spearfishing with his two sons in Baja California, Mexico. He was most at home around the ocean either on the beach enjoying a two-man volleyball game or in the water spearfishing and snorkeling.
   Bill was always on an adventure. How many people do you know who have been attacked by a dusky shark, and brought the jaws home? Who speared a 432 pound Black Sea Bass? Who built their own speargun because they couldn't find one that was good enough? Who in 1961 spent three months traveling Mexico with Sigma Chi fraternity brothers in a Korean War Ambulance, and returned years later with his wife to explore the interior of Mexico for three years?
   A true entrepreneur, he introduced to the diving world "High Modulus Rubber" that according to Jack Prodanovich, one of the forefathers of spearfishing, revolutionized the sport forever. Bill was also a dear friend of the "Bottom Scratchers," San Diego's first and most influential dive club. He was the first person on the West Coast to build a VW 2.0 liter engine, which he used to race competitively in Baja.
 		  
     
 
   Bill's other successful entrepreneurial efforts over the past 30 years include: the design of a line of Victorian reproduction lampshades and lamp bases, wrought iron and glass furniture and art bronzes. At the time of his unexpected death, he owned Burdoch Company in San Marcos that distributes black marble pedestals and bases to artists.
   Bill believed in the philosophy, "Give a man a fish, you feed him for today, Teach a man to fish, and you have fed him for a lifetime." Any kid in the neighborhood was welcome into his garage to help and learn about auto mechanics. He was  a devoted father who volunteered as a coach for his son's soccer teams, and never missed a practice or a game. For several years he organized an annual clothing and toy drive, delivering the contributions to an orphanage in Tijuana, Mexico. In 1986, he and his wife raised over $100,000 in donations to aid a burn victim who desperately needed to be transported from Mexico to the UCSD Burn Center.
   A humble and loving man, Bill tried each day to be thoughtful, considerate and courteous. His handshake and word were as binding as a written contract.
 		    
     He grew up in Coronado until the age of eight, when his family moved to a ranch near Alpine. Bill graduated as senior class president from El Cajon Valley High School in 1957 and earned a business degree from San Diego State University, where he was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.
   He is survived by his wife of 21 years, Janice Lowrey, and son Kyle Lowrey of Leucadia, CA; daughter Dawn Lowrey; son Billy Lowrey; and his siblings, brother Rick Lowrey; and sisters Lee Ross and Lynn Snickles, along with his many nieces and nephews. He is loved and missed by all of us.
 


Donations may be made payable to UC Regents. On the memo line write The Lowrey Fund, Birch Aquarium. Mail to: Dr. Nigella Hillgarth, Director, Steven Birch Aquarium, 9500 Gilman Drive, Dept. 0207, La Jolla, CA 92093-0207.


 

 

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