Don Lowry

1936 - 2024

Born in 1936 in Glendale, CA, Don Lowry, entrepreneur, author, and the creator of the
True Colors personality profiling system, passed away on May 18, 2024-his 88 th birthday, in
Rancho Mirage CA. He died of prostate cancer.
Don had a lifetime love of the beach and the ocean. After graduating from the
University of Washington, he returned to the Pacific Coast to teach biology and coach football
and baseball at Long Beach Polytechnic High School in California. Based on these experiences,
in 1962 he created his first company, Educational Systems International, which produced
educational products that were used nationwide.
When he wasn't working Don loved to play tennis and to surf. He lived near the beach
most of his adult life, residing primarily in Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Laguna Beach.
In 1978 Don's younger brother, Bill, committed suicide. From then on, Don wanted to
pursue something that would be transformative and make a difference in people's lives. Shortly
thereafter, upon meeting David Keirsey, author of Please Understand Me-a book on
temperament theory-Don had found his passion. He had always seen himself as someone who
seemed to react differently to the world, while others seemed to fit in. He was a loner, while at
the same time wanting to have the sense of belonging he felt everyone else had. David
Keirsey's temperament work unlocked Don's understanding of himself, and of other people.
Don wanted to make the complex concepts of Temperament Theory more easily
understandable and useful to people of all ages. This led him to develop True Colors, a model
that simplifies personality assessment into four color categories, Green, Orange, Blue, and
Gold. Each of the four colors is depicted using cards that illustrate and describe each respective
temperament's set of traits and preferences. Users sort the cards according to ""most like me""
and ""least like me"", resulting in one's ""Color Spectrum"". This quick, simple, and accurate
system, along with workshops and entertainment, aid individuals and teams in communication,
teamwork, understanding self and others, teaching and learning, leadership, parenting, love
relationships, and other areas of human interaction.
Don's goal was to reach as many people as possible with something transformative and
lasting. His work has profoundly impacted workshop participants worldwide, as it has been
translated into 15 languages, and his workshops are facilitated by over 10,000 certified True
Colors trainers. True Colors is a tool that's used in major corporations, government agencies,
the U.S. military, and schools nationwide, as well as by counselors who serve families and
couples.
Don Lowry is pre-deceased by his parents, Charles Lowry and Florence Ladue, his
brothers Bill Todd and Richard Lowry, and his first wife Suzanne Faurot. He is survived by his
daughter and son-in-law, Donnell and Tom Huebner; his son, Grant Hughes; his granddaughter,
Bronte Nemeth; his sister and brother-in-law, Jan Lowry-Cole and Don Cole; and his wife from
whom he was legally separated, Erica Walkingstick.

Donnell, Tom, Grant, Jan, Don, and Bronte and her boyfriend, Cody, had a private
spreading of Don's ashes off Dana Point in his beloved Pacific Ocean on July 20 th -joined by a
pod of dolphins! And skywriters were also painting hearts in the sky as the boat headed back to
shore.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the American Cancer Society.