C. W. "Mike" Lowen, who founded what is now Lowen Corp. (Hutchinson, KS) in 1950, died June 20, 2012 at age 84 in Bullhead City, AZ. He founded Lowen Sign Co. in a garage as a one-man signpainting company. Lowen Corp. now has five operating divisions, 325 employees and a 150,000-sq.-ft. headquarters with manufacturing plants in both Hutchinson and Houston. The company posts photos of all 25-year employees, past and present, and approximately 40 such photos are on display.
The most published obituary states, "He lived an amazing life in many parts of the world, but spent the last several years in the desert he loved as a boy. There is no way to convey in this space his many contributions, passions and interests. He gave freely of his enormous intellect and spirit and enriched the lives of everyone around him. Always an entrepreneur, he founded many business ventures. But this was just one facet of his life. He was also a published writer, musician, sailor, pilot, artist, photographer, gold miner, videographer, computer programmer, chef, boat builder, and adventurer."
The most complete obituary online was written by Nikki Wentling of The Hutchinson News.