MOUNT GILEAD, N.C. — Mount Gilead, North Carolina, is a small town at the foot of the Uwharrie Mountains. Among its population of less than 1,200 is a remarkable man who looks to be no more than 80 and moves around like much younger people.
But this man, Bob Lowdermilk, isn't 80. He's 100 years old, or in this case, 100 years young.
Lowdermilk was born in Mount Gilead in the same home where he lives today on March 28, 1924. There's really nothing he can't handle, either. He lives alone, drives everywhere, has a big garden and it's physically fit.
He graduated from high school and enrolled at North Carolina State when he was 17. While studying, World War II began and when Lowdermilk heard former President Franklin Roosevelt say Pearl Harbor would live in infamy, he was soon drafted into the Army. He joined the Air Corps and was sent to flight school and then pilot training. By 19, Lowdermilk was commissioned as a second lieutenant and earned his wings at Luke Air Force Base in Phoenix. He trained on the P-38 in California because he was sent to the Pacific theater.
Lowdermilk joined the 49th Fighter Squadron in the Philippines, where was on various missions, including surveillance operations around the Japanese islands. He served through the end of the war and was stationed in Okinawa when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. His service continued through the U.S. occupation of Japan. Of the 16 million men and women who served in WWII, only 119,000 are still alive to tell their story, including Lowdermilk.
You can't tell Bob Lowdermilk's story without mentioning his beloved wife Margaret, who passed away in 2019. They were married almost 70 years with two children. There are three grandchildren and one great-grandchild. On his birthday, there was a huge celebration at First United Methodist Church in Mount Gilead, with friends and family there to honor his 100th birthday.
If you're ever in the town of Mount Gilead, you too can pay tribute to Bob Lowdermilk at a special mural that was painted in his honor. It's displayed on one section of a brick building as you leave toward the town of Troy. The mural shows a portrait of Lt. Col. Lowdermilk as a cadet with the plane he flew and a squadron of aircraft behind it.
Contact Larry Sprinkle at lsprinkle@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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