N.L. Cowan Jr., 85, passed away June 24, 2019 at Providence Centralia Hospital. He was born in Cleburne, Texas, in 1934, to N.L. Cowan Sr. and MedaBelle Cowan, and a sister, Imogene.
He worked as a carpenter for the Santa Fe railroad, where his father worked, for a year before getting a bachelors degree in agricultural education at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. He met and married Wanda Lee Brooks at Texas Tech and they were married for 61 years before her death in 2014.
N.L. taught high school agriculture before serving in the United States Army in Germany from 1956 to 1958. In 1958, he and Wanda moved to Naselle, Wash., to teach and he became the high school principal there in 1962. He earned a masters degree in educational administration from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. In 1969, they moved to Mossyrock, where he was high school principal for a year before becoming the superintendent from 1970 to 1979. N.L. taught high school in Connell, Wash., from 1980 to 1988. He retired in 1988. He was a 32nd degree Mason and had served as the Master of Robert Morris Lodge of Silver Creek. He was a member of the Lions Club. N.L. helped build two churches, Grays River United Methodist Church and a chapel at Naselle Youth Camp.
The two big joys of his life were traveling with Wanda for many years after they retired and being with his family. N.L. and Wanda traveled to all seven continents, his favorite being Antartica.
N.L. is survived by two daughters, Cindi (Howard) Grewe of Edgewood, Wash., and Janis (Pete) Ward of Pasco, Wash.; four grandsons, Alex and Ben Grewe and Jeremy and Zachary Ward; and a great-nephew, Tim Cowan of Damascus, Ore.
A visitation will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., July 6, 2019, at Sticklin Funeral Chapel in Centralia. Immediately following will be a graveside service at 2 p.m., at Salkum Cemetery in Salkum, Wash. Please visit www.SticklinsFuneralChapel.com to sign the online guest book. Remembrances may be made to the Union Gospel Mission.
