Obituary: Raphael M. Lowe
September 5, 1929 - February 10, 2024
February 21, 2024Raphael M. Lowe, 94, of Finksburg, Maryland, (formerly of Waterbury, Vermont) passed away peacefully on Saturday, February 10, 2024, at his home, surrounded by his loving family.
Raphael M. Lowe, September 5, 1929 - February 10, 2024. Courtesy photo
He was born on September 5, 1929, in Waterbury, to the late William and Ella (Rogers) Lowe.
Ray started milking cows at the age of 9 on his father’s farm on Blush Hill in Waterbury. He continued to milk cows before and after school through elementary school and he graduated from Waterbury High School in 1947. Ray then graduated from the State School of Agriculture in 1948 and returned to the family farm on Blush Hill where he worked for his father until purchasing the farm from his father. Through the years, Ray bought and leased more land and the Lowe Farm was the largest farm in Waterbury, milking up to 400 cows.
Ray served the Waterbury community as 4H Leader, Selectboard member (10 years), Board of Civil Authority, Board of Adjustments, Justice of the Peace, president of the Waterbury Rotary Club (1972), and president of the Washington County Farm Bureau. He delivered Meals on Wheels and plowed the Waterbury Public Gardens for 20 years.
Ray received the Young Farmer of the Year award in 1959, the Outstanding Farmer of Washington County Award and Farm Family of the Year Award in 1969.
He was predeceased by a brother, Ralph Lowe, and a sister Maybeth Butler.
Ray is survived by his loving wife of 38 years, Joyce V. Lowe; children Roger (Jennifer), Marilyn, Glen, Nancy (Dan); step-children Richard (Diane), Lynn (Robert), Vance (Michelle), Gary (Kathleen), and Lori; brothers Wendell in Waterbury, and Gordon in Randolph, Vermont; 22 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren, one great-great-granddaughter, and several nieces and nephews.
The family will receive friends on Friday, Feb. 23, at the Eline Funeral Home in Finksburg, and a memorial service will be held on Saturday, Feb. 24. Inurnment will take place in Waterbury in the spring. Online condolences may be made at ElineFuneralHome.com.