Community reacts to Crestview business owner's passing

CRESTVIEW — Crestview lost a well-known member of the community after a tractor accident in rural Alabama.

Glenn Edward "Ed" Lowe, 53, passed away at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday in a town 3 miles outside on Greenville, Ala.

Lowe owned Crestview Paint and Body — a business the city and Crestview Police Department used for towing services.

Mayor David Cadle said Lowe was an important figure in the community.

"Many people had come to rely on Ed Lowe for the services he offered at (Crestview Paint and Body)," Cadle said. "He was always looking out for his customers … He has a lot of customers that have been with him for many years."

The Crestview Police Department have utilized Lowe's business for years when accidents occurred to return the normal traffic flow.

Brian Hughes, Crestview's Public Information Officer, said in an email, "In this, he is a great partner with the Crestview Police Department."

Glenn Branton, originally from Crestview, said he knew Lowe and his family from their childhood in the 70s.

"He was a great guy, generous and very, very funny," Branton, of Alabama, commented on Facebook. "I always enjoyed seeing him or talking to him, he was always upbeat and made you feel like he was glad to see you."

Lowe began helping his father run the body shop behind their home on Chestnut Avenue after graduating from Crestview High School in 1983. They eventually expanded to the building on West James Lee Blvd.

Lowe took over the business 35 years ago.

Evelyn Lowe reflected on her son's ability to run the family business.

"He had built up his business," she said. "He learned the trade from his father, and he was very good at his job."

Emily Cox said she worked for Ed Lowe about six years ago before moving to Kentucky in 2013. Cox also said her grandson is Lowe's great nephew through Lowe's sister, Sarah Jordan.

Cox said Lowe was full of humor and had a "caring heart" when it came to his employees.

"He was a good man to work for and he was a very understanding man," Cox commented on Facebook.

Austin Barger said he was friends with Lowe for many years and also worked with him for 10 years. Barger said Lowe was like a mentor for him.

"He really was a good person. You just had to get to know him, or he had to let you in his world," Barger said.

According to Butler County Sheriff Kenny Harden, Lowe was bush hogging deer plots in the woods on his late father's property when the side of the road caved in.

The tractor Lowe was riding fell down a 20-foot embankment, turning over on him.

Lowe was pronounced dead at the L. V. Stabler Memorial Hospital in Greenville.

According to an employee at Crestview Paint and Body, business remains open as of Monday afternoon.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Community reacts to Crestview business owner's passing