James Lynn "Jim" Lowder

James Lynn "Jim" Lowder was born in Stanly County, North Carolina, where he lived surrounded by a large extended family, most of whom were cotton mill workers. Jim's concern for housing insecurity was awakened as he grew up in Albemarle, a mill town where many residents' only options were mill houses, which they would lose if they lost their jobs.
Jim attended Duke University (1969), where he studied Philosophy and Religion. An activist early in his life, Jim, while a student at Duke, participated in student protests to demand reforms and rights for Black students and Black service employees of the university. He earned a Masters of Divinity degree at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky (1975), and a Masters in Social Work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1981).
Jim's calling to ministry led him to pastorates and inner-city ministries in, among other places, Louisville, Kentucky; Flint, Michigan; and Baltimore, Maryland. In all of the churches and organizations he served, he was known as a mentor and a nurturing, caring companion to at-risk youth, elders, and ministers in training.
His wife Jerene and he met at Dolores Street Baptist Church (DSBC) in San Francisco, California, when he became pastor there in 1981. He led DSBC to become officially "Welcoming and Affirming" of LGBTQ+ persons in their congregation and also to engage in nonviolent protests against nuclear weapons development and US engagement in Central American conflicts. Jim's vision inspired DSBC to create and sustain services to a wide variety of community groups - a homeless shelter for Central American refugees, a senior center, a food distribution program, a clinic, a recovery program for men overcoming violence, arts programs for community residents, and numerous 12-step programs.
Soon the church created Dolores Street Community Services (DSCS), where Jim became the Executive Director, to manage the community programs and to begin their focus on housing issues for refugees and persons living with AIDS. One of DSCS's significant creations under Jim's leadership was Hope House, a transitional residence for homeless persons living with AIDS. While in San Francisco, Jim became the first Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity SF (1996), leading the organization in developing their first "vertical housing" model (a building with residences on multiple floors) to maximize SF's limited and costly real estate.
Jim and Jerene's move to Western North Carolina in 2003 gave Jim the opportunity to use his leadership skills with the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America and with Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity. His strongest calling and deepest passion being with folks closer to the margins. Jim chose in 2011 to become a part of the leadership and development team of Homeward Bound of Western North Carolina, creating and sustaining permanent housing for the most vulnerable residents in his community. His final work project, before retiring in 2024, was leading the capital campaign team in raising $17.5 million to create Compass Point Village, 85 permanent supportive housing units for chronically homeless individuals.
Jim loved movies, and he enjoyed watching them with friends and exploring their themes and reflecting on their meaning with those friends. He believed in the power of storytelling, which made him a thoughtful and creative preacher and a particularly effective fundraiser. Interestingly, Jim also attracted people to him who needed to tell their stories. In grocery store lines, on park benches, while pumping gas, strangers would begin telling Jim about their recent crises and losses and concerns. Somehow they knew he would honor their stories and hold them with respect. Jim had an infectious laugh and a goofy sense of humor, much to the delight of his granddaughters. An early riser, he engaged in sunrise meditation by washing dishes by hand - one of his favorite spiritual practices. He also loved his daily sunset walks with Jerene on Ocean Beach in San Francisco as well as his daily three-mile ridge walks in Black Mountain with his dog Brigid.
Jim was devoted and generous to his friends and family. He was an adoring husband to his wife Jerene Broadway, father to his daughter Elizabeth Amanecer, and grandfather to his granddaughters Izabella, Ellia, Traezja, and Future. Jim was predeceased by his parents Jewell Morris Lowder and James Cicero Lowder, his first wife Rose Ann Warth, and his father-in-law WD Broadway, for whom Jim was a caregiver for the last two years of WD's life. Surviving family members include Jim's many cousins, in particular Ann Stuntz, who provided consistent supportive care for Jim during the last year of his life. Jim also counted Jerene's family as his own - her brother Mike (and his wife Carmen), her nephew David (and his husband Michael), her niece (and Jim's caregiver) Naomi, and her niece Lydia (and her husband Dave and son William).
A memorial service is being planned for a later date to be determined.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to: "James Lowder Fund for Ending Homelessness," supporting Homeward Bound of WNC in memory of Jim.
Checks can be made payable to:
Community Foundation of Western North Carolina
4 Vanderbilt Park Drive, Suite 300
Asheville, NC 28803
*Please note "James Lowder Fund for Ending Homelessness" in memo line.
Or donate online: https://cfwnc.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=11428
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