William Russell Lowe

Jan 14, 1939 - Sep 12, 2016

William R. “Bill” Lowe, kept a solid, steady rhythm for most of his life—joyously on the dance floor, singing in the church choir, or bursting into side-splitting laughter with family and friends over an ever-so-slightly inappropriate joke. Always climbing to the top note in “Some bright morning when this life is o’er, I’ll fly away,” Bill Lowe, 77, was a masterful contributor to life’s harmonies on so very many levels. After a long illness, and preceded in death by his beloved wife of 52 years, he died peacefully on Monday morning with his daughters beside him.

Bill was the youngest of five children, born at the tail end of the Great Depression in Wilkes County to Marvin and Ina Elledge Lowe. The family moved from the hill country of North Carolina to Gettysburg, PA when Bill was about two years old, where he resided until graduating from Gettysburg College and locating to Washington, DC. Somehow, from Kalorama Road, he became reaquainted with the daughter of family friends from Granite Falls, marrying Sharyn Harrold in 1963 and consequently moving back to Wilkes County, NC to raise a family.

A lifelong banker, Bill found his niche working as a trust officer for Wachovia in Winston-Salem, NC, where he spent 25 years before retiring in 2006. He was an avid listener of both classic country and classic Mozart, loved hiking in the mountains, volunteering with his church community, traveling and cooking dinner with people he cherished, taking long walks on a beach, being with his wife and family, and enjoying an ice cold beer after a full day. His ability to calmly listen and offer advice to “not sweat the small stuff,” made him a confidant of many. He is survived and dearly missed by daughters Michelle Lowe Soler and Allison Lowe Reed, sons-in-law Joe Soler and Banning Reed; grandchildren Will Soler, Aidan Reed, Leo Soler, and Charlotte Reed; sister, Judy Lowe Metz; and adored nieces and nephews.

A service will be held on Saturday, September 17, 11:00 am at First Baptist Church, 1000 Friendly Avenue, Greensboro, NC. Memorial gifts may also be made to First Baptist Church, Greensboro, NC.