Dr. John Lowenfeld

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. John Lowenfeld; loving husband of Nancy Clem, father of Robin, David (Laurie), Laura (Scott), father-in-law of Judith, step father of Sally (and "adopted' daughter Mindy) and Jason (Cynthia) proud grandfather of Cristina (Joseph), Christopher (Benjamin), and Grayton and friend to many. John was born in Austria in 1931 and was the proud son of Viktor and Margaret Lowenfeld. As a young child in Austria, John developed his love of learning and of the outdoors and spent much of his time in the mountains at a youth camp where his parents worked during summers. With the invasion of Austria, he and his parents migrated to the United States in 1938. John spent his formative years in Hampton, Virginia where his father, Viktor Lowenfeld, was professor of art education at Hampton College. Eventually the family moved to State College, PA. John received his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy from Pennsylvania State University. John came to Ohio in 1958 after two years as a commissioned officer in the Public Health Service in Denver, Colorado. When asked, John shared this experience as highly memorable. He served on the Board of Directors for Ohio Psychological Association and chaired or served on numerous committees. His most important role with OPA was serving on The Select Committee of eminent psychologists who created the Professional School of Psychology at Wright State University, one of the first independent schools of psychology in the USA. Establishing the Professional School was not without strong opposition from traditionalists and required strong clinical, academic, and political skills to overcome the opposition. The Professional School continues as one of the outstanding Schools of Professional Psychology in the US. In 1961 John joined the Psychology staff of the Brecksville Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital, a psychiatric hospital where he served as a ward psychologist, as the Assistant Chief, and as the Director of Clinical Training for Psychology. As Director of Clinical training he gained the American Psychological Association's approval for the Hospital's clinical training program for doctoral trainees in psychology. After retirement from the VA in 1989, he practiced with Behavior Management Associates, Western Reserve Psychologic Association, and adjunct faculty at Case Western Reserve University and Kent State University. John will be remembered by family, friends, and associates as a loving husband, father, and grandfather; distinguished, compassionate and patient psychologist; champion of social consciousness; and a gentleman that held the highest honesty and integrity. This gentle, wise, caring and wonderful man left a permanent mark etched on our hearts and will be missed dearly. He was a lover of books, classical music, photography and the outdoors. He loved camping and fishing and instilled the love of nature in his children. He had a life-long love affair with foods from his childhood and for his favorite companion – his dogs. His life was well lived and he was loved. His spirit was released from his worn out body on May 22, 2019 and he is now fishing somewhere on the other side with all of his past dogs in his boat. In lieu of flowers, the family asked that donations be made in John's name to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (www.donate.ushmm.org). Memorial Service to be held on Thursday, May 30th at 11:00am at New Covenant Community Church, 1587 W. Exchange St., Akron, OH. www.buschcares.com 216-741-7700