CRESTVIEW — Evelyn Lowe spent Monday morning recalling her son and the 53 years they spent together. She laughed and cried as she told stories from his childhood and reflected on the man he had become.
Glenn Edward "Ed" Lowe, the owner of Crestview Paint and Body, died in a tractor accident Saturday in rural Alabama, about 3 miles from Greenville.
He was bush hogging some deer plots deep in the woods when the side of the road caved in around 10:30 a.m., according to Butler County Sheriff Kenny Harden. The tractor went down a 20-foot embankment, turning over on Lowe.
Evelyn remembers her son as a hardworking businessman who took care of his employees, but also as a lover of nature.
"He was really at home in the forest hunting, or on the river fishing," she said. "He just adored the outdoors so much, but he was a hard worker, too. He knew everything about repairing cars."
The hunting property Lowe was working on at the time of the accident had belonged to his late father and namesake who died almost exactly a year ago.
Lowe’s father started Crestview Paint and Body in the late 1960s. Lowe began learning the business from his father, even as a young boy.
The body shop started in a small building behind their family home on Chestnut Avenue. Once Lowe graduated from Crestview High School in 1983, he helped his father run the business and eventually expanded it to a large property on U.S. Highway 90.
“He was sort of a workaholic. He would be gone before 7 in the morning,” Evelyn said. “Until he got sick for the first time in his life about a year ago, he wouldn’t come back home until about 6 at night.”
Evelyn said she is still trying to figure out what will happen with the business, but Crestview Paint and Body remained open as of Monday afternoon.
Lowe was married for 15 years until he lost his wife Teresa to cancer. They never had children and he hadn't yet remarried, but Lowe was engaged to his longtime girlfriend Amy Rice.
Lowe’s death came as a shock to his family and friends. Gill Powell, Lowe’s attorney and longtime friend, said he got the call Saturday while he was out of town. He was devastated.
"It's just sad. I'm speechless," Powell said. "I've known him all his life. He was a good guy. He never met a stranger and he was always in a good mood."
Evelyn is grateful that her son wasn’t alone when the accident happened. Her brother-in-law and some friends were on the property with him and were able to call 911 when they heard the crash.
Lowe was taken to L. V. Stabler Memorial Hospital in Greenville, where he was later pronounced dead.
“He had been talking to them right after they got to him,” Evelyn said, starting to cry. “My son-in-law was right there with him, holding his hand. He said the last words Ed said were, ‘Tell everybody I love them. I love my whole family.’”
Nathan Cobb and Kaylin Parker contributed to this article.
Thanks for reading Crestview business owner killed in tractor accident. Please share...!
0 Comment for "Crestview business owner killed in tractor accident"