Ruth Lowes

Ruth Lowes, 99, of Canyon died Thursday, March 7, 2002. There will be no services. Her body has been willed to the Medical School at the University of Iowa. Ruth Lowes spent her early years in Panhandle, Texas, graduating from high school there in 1919. She secured her higher education from West Texas State University (B.A. 1925), Columbia University (MA 1930), and the University of Iowa (Ph.D. 1948). Covering a period of fifty years, her teaching career has extended from a one-teacher rural school to graduate courses at West Texas State University. Her experience in administration included serving eight years as head of the Department of Education and Psychology during her tenure at WTSU. Early childhood education and the teaching of reading have been her areas of specialization. She estimates roughly that she has taught well over five thousand students during her career. She retired in 1972. Ruth came from a pioneer family in Panhandle, Texas. Her father, Joseph C. Lowes, was owner and publisher of the Panhandle Herald from 1906 until 1909. He was a founding member of the Panhandle Press Association. After his death, his wife Ida May Borton Lowes, became editor of the Panhandle Herald. Ruth's grandfather, John S. Lowes, was a medical doctor and circuit riding Methodist minister within driving distance of Carson County. He moved to Panhandle from Nebraska in 1892. Ruth was born in Barneston, Nebraska, in 1902. She was a teacher for 52 years, beginning in a one-teacher school in a rural area of the Panhandle. Later teaching at the demonstration school at WTSU, she spent most of her teaching career at West Texas State University. A Methodist all of her life, she served the church in various administrative capacities as well as teaching in the children's Sunday School department. After retirement, she enjoyed traveling. Her trips included Africa, Germany, Japan, Scandinavian Countries, and England, as well as areas of the United States. Under sponsorship of RSVP (Retires Senior Volunteer Program) of Amarillo, she has shared stories of her childhood in the Panhandle of Texas with many public school classrooms. She has also presented anecdotes and human-interest stories of life in the Texas Panhandle and of life on the WTSU campus in the early years of its history. She often wore a replica of a 1920's girl's basketball suit when making her presentation. In 1991, the Ruth Lowes Scholarship was established in her honor at WTSU. Honors include: Distinguished Service Award, TSTA, District XVI, 1958; WTSU Faculty Excellence Award, WTSU Ex-Students Association, 1972; Texas Panhandle Distinguished Service Award for Women, 1977; AAUW Named Gift Honoree, Outstanding Women of Texas Endowment, 1982-83; Women's Distinguished Service Award (Hall of Fame), 1985; Canyon's Outstanding Citizen, Chamber of Commerce presentation, 1985; Wesley Foundation Service Award WTSU), 1989; Canyon's Outstanding Citizen for the Decade, 1980-89; Texas Retired Teachers Association, Region XII, Grand Prix Award, 1988; Professor Emeritus, WTSU, 1992; Golden Nail Award Nominee, 1993, 1994; Francis Asbury Award for fostering United Methodist Ministries in Higher Education, 1995. Ruth's publications include: Articles in professional and religious magazines; Stories and articles in publications for children; Story in Friends New and Old, textbook published by Scott, Foresman and Company, 1961; Coauthor: Potpourri of Puppetry with Dr. Enid Bates, 1976; Coauthor: We'll Remember Thee, an information history of WTSU with Mitch Jones, 1984; Coauthor: A Cowboy Named Boots, co-authored with Mary Ray Sligar, 1989; Contributor: A Joyful Journey - A History of First United Methodist Church, Canyon, Texas 1889-1989, 1989; A Penny's Worth of Candy, 1995. Survivors inclue one niece and her husband, John and Linda Lowes Hatchel; one great niece, Barbara Hatchel; two half nieces, Margueri