Joshua James Lowy

Josh Lowy died last night. A kind soul, so loving and true. He had no tolerance for nonsense, and hence was not what is deemed a success in capitalist terms. He was smart, could pierce through any text, work of art, comment with a clarity rarely achieved. When he experienced something, it stuck.

After graduating from Sherwood High School in Olney , Maryland, where he placed three times in the State Wrestling Tournament, finishing with the most wins in a career at Sherwood, he attended the University of Chicago. He graduated with a degree in Art History. From day one, he read and analyzed the bizarrely intense Chicago curriculum, explaining Derrida, Foucault and others to his clueless but intellectually hungry parents, particularly father. His lessons will never die. Nor his gentleness.

His thesis on Sara Sze excited him as did his supervisor, Darby English and his wonderful friends.

After UChicago, he struggled, it seemed. An attempt at an MFA from The Art Institute of Chicago, various jobs, but none took. Depression and opiate addiction did, however, a seeming salve to the ills he found in himself and in that all too often, all too cruel, heartless and self centered world. Josh had trouble centering on himself, his empathy for others seared and shamed those who missed it.

A couple of stays at the Caron Foundation were helpful and appeared ( were) life changing. His insights into his life and his addiction did appear to take, whatever the final outcome, an outcome we all share.

His last weeks, he worked at Christ House in DC, caring for homeless medically ill men. He dreamt of a career in social work, helping those suffering from addiction. He excitedly told his parents that his tomato plant was finally bearing fruit.

On Friday August 7, he shared Pete’s pizza with his parents and watched Seth Rogen’s pickle movie. The movie dealt with family legacy, Jewishness and the falsity of our present late capitalist world. About twenty four hours later, we think, he was dead of an apparent opiate overdose. There were no signs this was intentional. An antibiotic ointment tube was next to him, to treat a bug bite.

The movie was mediocre and Josh astutely commented on the haphazardness with which it was stitched together. His inability to fit in to this satirized world, his legacy being now all and the desire for tenets of the Jewish faith to hold truth, or any faith, that there is some sort of heaven, that his spirit is alive, however,these are all deeply felt. Hello. Goodbye. Hello. Josh.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Caron Foundation, a substance abuse facility in Pennsylvania, that valiantly helped Josh, and the family , are appreciated.

https://www.caron.org/give-to-caron/donate-to-Caron