Ralph Bowermaster

Ralph E. Bowermaster, 87, passed away on Easter Sunday, April 8, 2012, at Pleasant View Lutheran Home. A visitation will be held Monday, April 30, 2012 from 4:00 - 7:00 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Ottawa. A memorial service in Ralph's honor will be 11:00 Tuesday, May 1, 2012 at Trinity Lutheran Church following a private burial at Oakwood Cemetery. Ralph was born April 24, 1924, in Ottawa, son of Ralph H. and Esther (Hunter) Bowermaster. He married Barbara Cryer from El Paso, Illinois, on August 23, 1952. Ralph is survived by his wife Barbara and their children, Jon Bowermaster, Meg Roen, Mary (Frank) Limbaugh, and Tod (Cynthia) Bowermaster; his grandchildren, Zachary and Nicholas Roen, Jessica and Neil Henges and Kathryn and Ryan Bowermaster; and his brother, Allan Bowermaster. His sister Irma preceded him in death. Ralph attended Ottawa Township High School, La Salle Peru Oglesby Jr. College (IVCC) and Northwestern University, where he received his B.A., M.A. and Ph. D. in Business, Education and School Administration. He went on to teach at Earlville High School, Lincoln School in Ottawa and New Trier High School before becoming an administrator with the Park Forest and Rockford school systems. He also worked in finance at Peat Marwick and Mitchell and the State of Illinois' Department of Public Works. In 1972 Ralph returned to his hometown of Ottawa where he opened his first McDonald's restaurant, followed by two more in Pontiac and Dwight, businesses he operated for 24 years. A widely respected member of the community during the past three decades Ralph served on boards at the IVCC Foundation, Ottawa YMCA, the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce, the Boy Scout Museum, Ottawa Regional Hospital, Pleasant View and was a founding board member of First of America Bank (now Old Second). Ralph's favorite pastime was collecting, restoring and exhibiting antique cars, for which he won many prizes and gained friends across the country. He and Barbara were longtime supporters of the Illinois Valley Symphony Orchestra and awarded a variety of scholarships to Ottawa High School students. In lieu of flowers, Ralph would have appreciated charitable donations to the IVCC Foundation (815 North Orlando Smith Road, Oglesby, IL 61348); the Illinois Valley Symphony Orchestra (PO Box 306, Ottawa, IL 61350) or the YMCA (201 E. Jackson, Ottawa, IL 61350).