Bowman, Jack E.
Date of death: 29 Apr 2001, Franklin, Johnson County, Indiana
Franklin Daily Journal, Franklin, Johnson County, Indiana; May 2, 2001
Repository: Genealogy Library Family Files, Johnson County Museum of History, Franklin, Indiana
Former School Leader
Remembered
by Wynita Worley
DAILY JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
wworley@thejournalnet.com
Family and friends remember former Franklin assistant superintendent Jack Bowman as a quiet, reserved man who enjoyed his job as a budget analyst for school systems.
Bowman, 73, died Sunday. He was a retired business manager from Franklin Community School Corp. and formerly served as superintendent for Edinburgh Community School Corp.
His family described the former math and business teacher as a man who wasn’t quick to show his emotions but was willing to do anything to fix a problem.
Chad Bowman, 23, flew in from Phoenix to attend his grandfather’s funeral today. He said the public his grandfather worked for probably never realized what a family man Jack Bowman really was.
About five years ago, Bowman’s wife, Phyllis, suffered her first stroke, Chad Bowman said. He remembers getting a call from his grandfather during the night asking that the family come help take care of his grandmother.
“At that point he was really concerned with her and doing everything he could for her”, Chad Bowman said. “On the outside he seemed kind of rough and stern, but he was really a pretty good guy.”
Jack Bowman began his teaching career at the same school he graduated from in 1945: Fairland High School.
His son, Kevin Bowman, recalls his father spending hours at work, even teaching an adult typing class when his father didn’t know how to type.
“If he had knowledge, he enjoyed sharing it with people,” Kevin Bowman said.
Bowman quickly became principal of Manilla High School and then superintendent in Mitchell in 1969. After 10 years, he moved to Edinburgh until 1985, when he served under Franklin Superintendent Sterling Haltom. He retired from Franklin in 1990.
Haltom described Bowman as a real southern Indiana gentleman who liked to talk shop with his colleagues and enjoyed life from day to day.
“We had some real good golfing times together and some good working times together,” Haltom said. “He wasn’t one to go out and put on a big show.”
One of Bowman’s hobbies was woodworking. He even helped his son remodel a home by making molding to fit around the doorframes, Haltom said. Haltom ordered an old-fashioned pie safe from Bowman five years ago.
Jim Carey, one of Bowman’s golfing buddies at Deer Valley Golf Course, remembers a set of bookshelves he saw Bowman craft a few years ago.
“It wasn’t just thrown together”, Carey said. “It was really first-class work”.
Carey met Bowman 10 years ago on the golf course. Their common background in school adminisitration gave them something to talk about on and off the course.
Bowman’s neighbor said the one thing he remembers about his friend was how easy Bowman was to talk to, especially about education and finance. Although Bowman retired almost 11 years ago, he had worked as a financial consultant for other school districts, Haltom said.
Franklin Daily Journal, May 1, 2001
FRANKLIN
Jack Eugene Bowman
Jack Eugene Bowman, 73, died Sunday, April 29, 2001, at Johnson Memorial Hospital in Franklin. He was a resident of Franklin and a former resident of Edinburgh and Mitchell.
He was born Nov. 8, 1927, in VanBuren Township, Shelby County. His parents were Leonidas and Nora (Powell) Bowman. He married Phyllis Ann (Thurston) Bowman on March 5, 1949. She survives. Other survivors include a son, Kevin T. Bowman of Indianapolis; a sister, Doris Williams of Florida; and two grandchildren. He was preceded in death by four brothers and a sister.
He was a 1945 graduate of Fairland High School. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Indiana University in education and school administration.
He was employed by Franklin Community School Corp. as an assistant superintendent, retiring in 1990. He was previously employed by Mitchell and Edinburgh school systems as a superintendent.
He attended Shiloh Church in Franklin.
He was a U. S. Navy veteran, serving in the late 1940s.
The Rev. David Williams will conduct a service at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Carmony-Ewing Harrison Street Funeral Home in Shelbyville. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. today at the funeral home. Burial will be at Forest Hill Cemetery in Shelbyville.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Lung Association.
Transcribed by Stuart Johnson