Lowe "Adlai" Boyd

Lowe Adlai Boyd, age 90, of Black Mountain, NC, passed away on Feb 26, 2026, following a period of declining health. Adlai was born in 1935 in Dunedin, FL, the fourth of eight children (and one of four redheads) in the blustery aftermath of a hurricane that blew the roof off his birthing room. He grew up there, one block from the St. Joseph Sound, where, when not in school, taking care of younger sibs, or working for his train stationmaster father, he spent every possible moment fishing, racing pram sailboats, and generally getting into mischief. He told stories of leaning at 45 degrees over the marina seawall into a hurricane's burly wind; of overnight sailing excursion strandings on white sand isles (making coquina soup to survive!); of moving a local farmer's outhouse on Halloween -just a few feet back; and of climbing out his window down the alligator pear tree, long past bedtime, to step out into the company of best friends and the freedom of night.

Insatiably curious, Adlai was a lifelong scholar, first earning the esteem of his literary mother - who convinced his father that higher education was the antidote for a restless, analyzing mind, and then, in rapid-fire succession, a Philosophy B.A. (Maryville College, TN) and a M.A. in Divinity and M.A. in Christian Education (Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, VA).

Adlai knew a life well lived is one lived in service to others, making posts as Minister of Education at three large southeastern churches, and appointments as Dean of Students at Lenoir-Rhyne and King Colleges natural next steps. Leaving full-time ministry in 1968, he spent the remainder of his career seeking to improve educational systems and behavioral training for children and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities: First as Director of Education and Training at the Western Carolina Center in Morganton, and next - while he pursued his PhD in Special Education and Training at Temple University - as the Special Education Director at Woodhaven, where he oversaw a children's cottage school. There he taught behavior therapy and supervised graduate students; and later as Training Director, steered curriculum development while consulting at special education programs and residential institutions in greater Philadelphia.

After obtaining his doctorate, Adlai returned to the clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico and his childhood home to help care for his aging father. He took a faculty position at the Florida Mental Health Institute on the University of South Florida campus in Tampa, where he directed a pre-school and a day treatment/residential parent and child training research program. Adlai was named chair of the Child and Family Studies (CFS) department in 1981, serving in that capacity for a decade.

Adlai retired to the family's Montreat, NC, mountain home, "Sussurando" - named for the soothing sound of the creek burbling beside it. Ever a music aficionado, and eager to return to the choral singing that so inspired him in college, Adlai joined and later presided over the Asheville Choral Society, singing a lusty baritone. He married piano accompanist, Karen Mangels Boyd, whereupon they resided in gladsome harmony, and sang together in the Chancel Choir at Black Mountain Presbyterian. They moved to Highland Farms in 2018, where they lived and loved until his recent passing.

Adlai believed the world was a friendly place in which to live, and that optimism imbued his every lesson, every sermon, every act of advocacy and kindness. He sought, through research and years of unwavering striving, to help disabled and disadvantaged children to receive needed services - and to thrive! He positively influenced countless students and colleagues through gentle mentoring and spirited community-building, and touched many others, especially his family, by sharing his love of stimulating discourse, his passion for classical music, his easy laughter and ridickledockle wordplay, and the calm he embraced in the evening hush on the porch among whispering trees.

Until next they meet, Adlai leaves his beloved Karen, wife of 25 years; pup Allegro vivace ("Ali"); siblings Richard Boyd (Susan) of Beaufort, NC, Anne Frazier of Erwin, TN, David Boyd (Nancy) of Gainesville, FL, and sister-in-law Barbara Mangels of Black Mountain, NC; son Adlai Boyd II, of Clearwater FL; daughter Rebekah Boyd, of Shelburne Falls, MA; grandchildren Eleanora Boyd-Owens, of Denver, CO, and Nathaniel Boyd-Owens, of Erving, MA; son John Boyd, daughter-in-law, Lisette Bustamante, and grandchildren, Roen and Reya Boyd, all of Marietta, GA; stepson Peter Salvucci, of Istanbul, Turkey, and step-grandaughter Trista Salvucci, of Asheville, NC.

Adlai is also survived by countless nieces, nephews, and dear friends that had the great pleasure of knowing him, as well as former spouses Laura Huff and Sandra Pelzel. He was preceded in death by his parents, Elizabeth Pearl Lowe Boyd and Robert Ulric Boyd, Sr.; two brothers, Robert and John Boyd; and sisters Elizabeth and Jayne Boyd.

The family is ever-grateful for the compassionate caretaking of the staff of Four Seasons Hospice and Highland Givens Farm during Adlai's illness.

A memorial service will take place on Friday, April 24, at 2:00 pm in the Assembly Room at the Brookside Center, Givens Highland Farm, Black Mountain. In lieu of flowers, donations in Adlai's memory can be offered to the Asheville Area Piano Forum, the Asheville Choral Society, the Asheville Humane Society, or Maryville College.