Class Note 1972
Issue
Jul - Aug 2016
It has been my pleasure to serve up news during the past four years, and I want to thank fellow ’72s who sent me personal, business, retirement and other updates.
Speaking of retirement, in May Thurm Lowans hung up his robes as “the sole, full-time Superior Court commissioner in Kitsap County [in Washington state].” Thurm “was unanimously appointed to the court in January 1994 by the Superior Court judges and retired with more than 22 years of judicial service. Prior to his appointment he practiced law for 15 years in Kitsap County, following three years active duty as judicial advocate general with the U.S. Navy, stationed on Whidbey Island. Lowans retired from the Navy Reserves in 1996 after 22 years with the rank of commander. Lowans is a past president of the Kitsap County Bar Association.
“Throughout Lowans’ judicial tenure he has presided over countless family law, juvenile dependency, mental health, domestic violence and adoption cases. His work on the bench was the front line for legal intervention in sensitive legal issues having dramatic and lasting impacts on the lives and relationships of Kitsap County citizens. In addition to carrying a full-time caseload, Lowans was instrumental in the creation of the Kitsap County Courthouse facilitator program, which is designed to help self-represented litigants navigate complex family law court processes. He also established a juvenile court diversion program, youth court, which continues to address offenses committed by kids who are then sentenced by their peers.
“Lowans has served on the Superior Court Judges’ Association (SCJA) family and juvenile law committee and as a trustee and SCJA representative to the Washington State court-appointed special advocate board. Lowans has been a faculty member of the Washington State Judicial College and is a contributing author for the State Non-Offender Bench Book.”
To cap off his distinguished career, Thurm received the Lee Ann Miller Award, presented annually “to the individual who has made the greatest impact or contribution in furthering the goals of the Children’s Justice Act.”
Rags Bratz from Oslo writes: “Life here in Norway is enjoyable for a pensioner such as me. We (my wife, Kristin, included) spend time together with grandchildren (three) and children (four) here in Oslo and vacationing up in the mountains for much of the summer and fall seasons. Life is generally good, apart from a slight heart disorder, which I can live with.”
From Lawrie Lieberman: “We’ve moved to Bozeman, Montana, and absolutely love it. While we loved our 15 years in Tahoe, California, it’s become too much of a destination resort. Bozeman is a great combination of fewer people, more space, university town and all the outdoor recreation we can imagine. We see Jack Manning regularly.”
I want to thank Bill Schur for his steady hand on the class of ’72 tiller as president. Bill hosted John “Rocky” Rockwell, Chip Carstensen, Marc Josephson, Jon Einsidler and me at the New York Athletic Club for our next-to-last class executive committee meeting, with 10 other classmates on the bridge, this time coinciding with a Blackhawks game.
—Bill Price, 12 Lummi Key, Bellevue, WA 98006; bill@drivasolutions.com
Speaking of retirement, in May Thurm Lowans hung up his robes as “the sole, full-time Superior Court commissioner in Kitsap County [in Washington state].” Thurm “was unanimously appointed to the court in January 1994 by the Superior Court judges and retired with more than 22 years of judicial service. Prior to his appointment he practiced law for 15 years in Kitsap County, following three years active duty as judicial advocate general with the U.S. Navy, stationed on Whidbey Island. Lowans retired from the Navy Reserves in 1996 after 22 years with the rank of commander. Lowans is a past president of the Kitsap County Bar Association.
“Throughout Lowans’ judicial tenure he has presided over countless family law, juvenile dependency, mental health, domestic violence and adoption cases. His work on the bench was the front line for legal intervention in sensitive legal issues having dramatic and lasting impacts on the lives and relationships of Kitsap County citizens. In addition to carrying a full-time caseload, Lowans was instrumental in the creation of the Kitsap County Courthouse facilitator program, which is designed to help self-represented litigants navigate complex family law court processes. He also established a juvenile court diversion program, youth court, which continues to address offenses committed by kids who are then sentenced by their peers.
“Lowans has served on the Superior Court Judges’ Association (SCJA) family and juvenile law committee and as a trustee and SCJA representative to the Washington State court-appointed special advocate board. Lowans has been a faculty member of the Washington State Judicial College and is a contributing author for the State Non-Offender Bench Book.”
To cap off his distinguished career, Thurm received the Lee Ann Miller Award, presented annually “to the individual who has made the greatest impact or contribution in furthering the goals of the Children’s Justice Act.”
Rags Bratz from Oslo writes: “Life here in Norway is enjoyable for a pensioner such as me. We (my wife, Kristin, included) spend time together with grandchildren (three) and children (four) here in Oslo and vacationing up in the mountains for much of the summer and fall seasons. Life is generally good, apart from a slight heart disorder, which I can live with.”
From Lawrie Lieberman: “We’ve moved to Bozeman, Montana, and absolutely love it. While we loved our 15 years in Tahoe, California, it’s become too much of a destination resort. Bozeman is a great combination of fewer people, more space, university town and all the outdoor recreation we can imagine. We see Jack Manning regularly.”
I want to thank Bill Schur for his steady hand on the class of ’72 tiller as president. Bill hosted John “Rocky” Rockwell, Chip Carstensen, Marc Josephson, Jon Einsidler and me at the New York Athletic Club for our next-to-last class executive committee meeting, with 10 other classmates on the bridge, this time coinciding with a Blackhawks game.
—Bill Price, 12 Lummi Key, Bellevue, WA 98006; bill@drivasolutions.com