Frame John Bowers III was born in Washington, DC. In high school, he was a National Honor Society member, swimmer and football player. He earned both his Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America and Queen Scout, the Canadian equivalent.
John received a Presidential Appointment entering with the Class of ’68. During Beast, he was medically turned back, but he was later readmitted with the Class of ’69. John liked to note that, technically, he was one of the few five-year men who graduated with stars. At the end of plebe year, he was seventh in the class…his same standing at graduation. He was the first in the class to branch Armor.
Following the Basic Course, John was assigned to 3/8 Cavalry (Germany). While attending flight school he also won the heart of the love of his life, Judy Wiggins. After marrying, John immediately deployed to Vietnam with the 229 Assault Helicopter Battalion. Following this combat tour, John completed the Armor Career Course. He then earned an MS in aerospace engineering from Princeton University. Afterwards, John served as a company commander at Ft. Hood, followed by a utilization tour as a flight test engineer (Edwards Air Force Base). John then decided to pursue a civilian career in aeronautics, but remained in the reserves, completing CGSC and War College. John retired from the reserves as a lieutenant colonel in 1997. During his 28 years (11 active, 17 reserve) in the U.S. Army, John received the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Air Medal with 23 oak leave clusters, Army Commendation Medal, Reserve Commendation Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal and the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry.
After active duty service John moved to Cincinnati to join General Electric as an aeronautical engineer. While at GE, John earned his MBA from Xavier University. He later became a Black Belt Six Sigma instructor with GE, teaching to airline executives worldwide. Still active in scouting, he was awarded the “Spirit of the Eagle,” the Boy Scout’s Lifetime Achievement Award. John was diagnosed with ALS in 2008, and retired from General Electric after 28 years of dedicated and highly successful corporate service.
Perhaps John’s legacy is best expressed by the eulogy written by his children, Jennifer and David:
“Daddy, you touched so many people over the course of your almost 64 years. You are such a wonderful person. You are the person who always does the right thing, no matter what. You are the best father, husband, grandfather, military officer, coach, pilot, teacher, son, brother, friend and above all, an inspiration. You will continue to inspire both of us as we face life and the many challenges that are to come. You have been and will always be a gauge as to how to live our lives the right way.
Everything you do, you do 100 percent and never cut corners. You always have taken the high road, and you have the strongest moral compass of anyone. You always led by example, and we turned out the way we did because of your and mom’s excellent examples of how to live our lives the right way, not the easy way. We have more respect for you than anyone else on earth—we always have, but as we've become adults, we now realize how hard some of the choices you have made in life have been…And we respect and admire you for never compromising your morals but always walking the straight path.
Although quiet, he was fearless and always sought out the next challenge. We have asked, ‘Why did this happen to our Dad; he did everything right? Of all people, he did not deserve this!’ This question has plagued our whole family, and we’ve truly struggled with finding the answer. But now, we have come to recognize that God let our father develop ALS because He knew our Dad could not only handle this challenge but also use it to teach others during this journey in his life. Our father would lead by example, helping others look inward, and be inspired by our Dad’s quiet courage and determination to deal with it and live life to the fullest anyway. John Bowers never let this hurdle define him as a person; instead he took it in stride. It illuminated how he led his life —rising to whatever challenge came his way. Our hope is that our Dad’s fearless determination against this terrible test has taught others about themselves and faith in God.
In closing, our father would not want people to cry, he would not want people to spend money on a funeral, and most importantly he would not want people to be upset over his passing. Our Dad would want people to look into themselves and embrace life with the same faith, dedication and fearlessness he had when facing life’s challenges, including ALS.
Dad, your helicopter is fixed and it is time to fly…Best of luck on your new adventure, we love you.”
John is survived by his wife, Judy; children Jennifer Bowers Pang of Honolulu, HI, and Major David Frame Bowers of Arlington, VA; grandsons John “Kailoa” Pang and Kawika Pang; sister Nancy Duderstad; brother Bill; and his father, Frame John Bowers Jr.
John is now in heaven. He is able to lead the angels on reveille runs and is likely helping Saint Peter to buck the place up. But let us remember how he touched us and be grateful we knew him.