Paul Laverne Lowry

Sept. 7, 1916 – Oct. 29, 1994

~ ~ ~
Commemorative Brick Laid

on
Old Soldiers Day
Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025

American Legion Post 201
Walk of Memories
Alpharetta, Georgia

A Look at Paul Lowry’s Life

Paul’s wartime service started when, at 24-years-old, he was drafted and stationed initially at Ft. Snelling, Minn. However, he was transferred to Aviation Cadet School, taking his pre-flight training at Kelly Field, Tex.; Bombardier training in Midland, Tex., Navigation school in Hondo, Tex., and Radar Instructor training in Boca Raton, Fla.  

 He earned his commission as a 2nd Lieutenant on Nov. 25, 1942 and remained on active duty with the U.S. Army Air Force until May 7, 1947. After being commissioned, he had a variety of training assignments at various East Coast locations until he was transferred to the 97th Bomb Group in Italy in July 1944. 

 From then until the War in Europe ended in May 1945 he flew 49 missions as a B-17 Flying Fortress bombardier/navigator with the 97th. He flight record credits him with a total of 287 hours flying time in B-17s, with 237 of those hours recorded as “combat time.” 

 He returned to the states in May 1945 for a one year, serving with the 3501st Army Air Force Base unit in Boca Raton. Then it was back to Schweinfurt, Germany in April 1946 to an assignment with the 355th Fighter group until he returned to the states and left active duty for civilian life on May 7, 1947. However he couldn’t make a total break from the military as he continued to serve in the newly established USAF Reserve until he was honorably discharged on Sept. 27, 1955 from Hq, Continental Air Command, in Denver, Colo. 

 His awards and decoration include the Air Medal with 2 bronze oak leaf clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 2 bronze battle stars, the Rome/Arno Campaign Star, the Southern France Campaign Battle Star, one overseas service bar, the Victory medal, and the German Occupation ribbon.

 As a civilian he, like so many of his generation, turned the page to the next chapter of their live. He went to work in the plumbing and heating department of Sears, Roebuck & Company, initially in Champaign, Ill. and retiring from the company’s Palm Beach, Fla. location in 1971. Retirement didn’t sit well with him so he spent the next 10 years serving warrants for the Palm Beach County Sherriff’s office. 

 But it’s the memories of him as a father, not a military veteran, which his family treasures. “He was adamant that his children should all attend college – – – and we did,” Cheiri said. “I still have the letter he sent congratulating me on my graduation from Illinois State,” she added. 

 She also carries other memories of him. She said he could do a ‘wicked’ imitation of Jackie Gleason’s signature catchphrase, “And away we go!”. It’s a phrase which became one of the most famous lines in television history. And in true Jackie tradition, his musical repertoire included singing his version of “Lulu’s Back In Town” as well as reciting the poem “A Farmer’s Life.”  

 Perhaps the last four lines of that poem testify to why Paul Lowry was a member of the Greatest Generation:

 When Spring rolls around, I’ll take another chance,

While the fringe grows long on my old grey pants,

Give my ‘spenders a hitch, my belt another jerk,

And, by heck!, I’m ready for a full year’s work!

 -End-