Edwin William Rowlee

Ed Rowlee is known by so many of you in the community. He was the guy you met at either of the Hardees for coffee on Wednesday evenings, or Saturday mornings. Or, maybe you met him or were his server at the Cracker barrel for breakfast before class. He was the guy who was interested in everything, so maybe you attended ham radio fests with him, or, train shows, or computer fairs. He loved to travel and ride any train trip available in the U.S., or abroad. So, he was the guy with whom you took trips; to the east coast and Florida with the Newtons, and, to Las Vegas and the west coast with Tommy. Or, maybe you were a student or faculty member who accompanied him on the CSCC trips abroad each summer. There are many of you who know him as the beloved, if a little bit wacky at times, chemistry professor at CSCC for the past 41 years; the one who tutored you until you were able to get a passing grade in chemistry that allowed you to pursue your goal of becoming a nurse, a doctor, or a pharmacist. It was against his very nature to allow someone to fail, who was even the slightest bit motivated, and he spent countless hours of his own time tutoring students. He was a beloved colleague to Becky, Denise, John, Mathai, Charles, and others like the Dorsets, and the Spaights, with whom we started the CSCC journey. And that office! If you remember him for nothing else, you will remember him for that office. It was a "disaster waiting to happen" to most of us. But to him, it was all valuable, if not now, then later. His “disorganized” organization was a secret understood only by him. He was born in Anoka MN on May 15, 1941, but actually lived on his grandfather?s farm in St. Francis MN. In 1946, the family moved to Rapid City SD, then in 1949 to Blackhawk SD where they lived until 1952. From there they moved to Pembina ND for two years, and then to Grand Rapids MN. In 1958 they moved to Superior WS where Ed completed his last year of high school at Superior East. He completed his undergraduate college degree at Superior State College in 1959, and then moved to Iowa City, IA where he got his Masters degree from the University of Iowa in 1963. He completed post graduate work there as well. While in Iowa City, he met Joanne Reimer at a church college group, and, they were married in 1968 between her junior and senior year in the College of Nursing at the University of IA. That was so her grades could improve. Being "in love", and having to say good night at her off campus housing door each night required a lot of time that could have been used to study. Ed and Joanne moved to Cleveland TN in 1969 for Ed to join CSCC as a faculty member. In 1970 their first son, Chad Michael was welcomed, followed in 1972 by another son, Derrick Edwin. In 1973, Karin Suzanne was welcomed into the family. We loved being a family even during the harder times that every family experiences. In 2007, we became grandparents of a wonderful and challenging grandson, Beren Kincaid, who shared his Grand pop?s love of trains. Then, just three months ago, on May 13, 2010, we welcomed our new baby girl Embry Kincaid, who has been our joy and inspiration during this past 6 weeks. Ed is survived by his loving wife, Joanne; three children; Chad Rowlee, Derrick Rowlee, and, Karin (Jimmy) Kincaid, plus two grandchildren Beren Scott Kincaid, and Embry Rose Kincaid. He will be missed greatly by his only sister Kathy (George) Ellison of Lime Springs, IA, and their sons Jim (Amanda) Ellison and Dan (Mary) Ellison and their families. He was loved greatly by his brother- in-law Ronald (Pat) Reimer, and their children Curtis (Jodie) Reimer, and, Emily (Jason) Anderson and their families. He will also be missed by his brother-in-law, Jonathan (Nancy) Reimer who shared his love of chemistry, and, their daughters, Stephanie (John) Grindy and family, and, Melissa Reimer. Ed Rowlee memorial and visitation will be held at 7 PM on Saturday, August 21, 2010 on the campus of CSCC (Fine Arts Building ? Johnson Center) In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Edwin Rowlee Memorial Scholarship Fund, or to the Creutzfeldt – Jakob disease Foundation. However, if you still would like to send flowers, they can be sent to the Ralph Buckner Funeral Home. Addresses, e-mails, and websites are as follows: Cleveland State Community College Foundation Edwin Rowlee Memorial Scholarship Fund PO Box 3570 Cleveland, TN, 37320 Checks to: CSCC Foundation (memo) Edwin Rowlee Memorial Scholarship Beirne Beatty 423-6148703 http://www.clevelandstatecc.edu/ Ralph Buckner Funeral Home and Crematory is in charge of the arrangements.