Our beloved comrade, Clifton Lowder died November 1, 1986 in Orlando, Florida. Myrtle Lowder, his devoted wife and his daughter Claudia provided a comprehensive perspective of one of our "Greatest of the Greatest Generation" for this album. This summary recalls the typical experiences of many Hq1 men and their families before, during and after World War II, and it is of immeasurable value to the album. It will help many readers understand what kind of men served as WW II paratroopers. Like Cliff Lowder, they were brave, efficient, determined, and dedicated men.
Myrtle Lowder always referred to Clifton as "My Lowder" -- and still does. Myrtle says:
“I met my ‘Lowder’ during the 1943 Memorial Day weekend – for me it was love at first sight. Thereafter, Cliff Lowder, Harry Higgins, John Boone and Harry Monroe came to Charlotte, North Carolina every weekend [at this time, Hq1 was stationed at Camp Mackall, NC and the men were qualified parachutists]. I lived with Higgins' High School sweetheart, his sister and another girl. We worked as radio technicians at Morris Field, but we reserved our weekends for ‘our’ paratroopers.
When the 508th PIR shipped overseas in December 1943, we girls were lost. We kept busy doing what thousands of other wives and girlfriends did -- filling jobs that men had previously accomplished.
We lived for mail from our boys. ‘Lowder’ lost many friends on D-Day when they parachuted into Normandy and later into Holland; and still later fought in the terrible ‘Battle of the Bulge.’
We lost our dear friend Sergeant Harry Higgins in Normandy.
My ‘Lowder’ came home on September 30, 1945, and we were married October 10, 1945 , in Asheville, NC. We lived in Summerton, SC for sev-eral years while ‘Lowder’ worked as a Master Plumber and went to night school to further his education.
We moved to Virginia In August 1951, where ‘Lowder’ taught plumbing and heating in a Manassas Vocational High school for two years.
In October 1953, we moved to Orlando, Florida. ‘Lowder’ became a salesman for the Southern Pipe and Supply Company. He worked there for 33 years until his death in 1986. For years ‘Lowder’ had been the top | 
