Lee Mowry, Jr., a seasoned radio and sports commentator from Turner Church Road in Rome, passed away on January 13, 2008, at 86.
Lee was born before Edith, who passed away in July 2001. He left behind two daughters, Marsha Whatley and husband David of Rome, and Harriet Owens and Martin Ball of Rome, as well as a son, Lee Mowry III, and his wife, Jo Anne of Roanoke, Virginia.
Additionally, he is survived by seven great-grandchildren and five grandchildren: Robin Holley of Canton, Georgia; J.J. Owens of Roman; Darren Murray of Potomac Falls, Virginia; Amanda Ammons of Canton, Georgia; and De Whitley. Bill and Leland Greeley, nephews from South Carolina, and Mary Baker, a sister-in-law from Rome, are also left behind.
In Tennessee’s Isabella, Lee was born. Leland B. and Margaret Mowry’s son was born on March 30, 1921, not far from Copperhill, Tennessee. When his father began working for the Celanese Corporation, he relocated early to Rome.
Following the war, Lee moved back to Rome and was employed as a young reporter for the Floyd County Herald, where he covered neighborhood sports.
He started his career in radio and sports when he was invited to announce a Textile League baseball game in 1947. He aired everything from Little League baseball, the Pony League, and the Colt League to high school football, college basketball, and professional golf for over 40 years in Rome.
Numerous sports legends, including some of the best of all time, have been interviewed by him over the years, including Ted Williams, Hank Aaron, Stan Musial, Al Kaline, Red Grange, and Dizzy Dean.
As the first broadcaster inducted into the Rome and Floyd Sports Hall of Fame, he also served as a communicant of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and Detachment Jake Puryear of the Marine Corps League. He, too, hosted the Grab Bag show for years, which could be heard on the radio in the morning.
