Richard Jerry Low

Lt. Col Richard J. Low (Ret.) was born in Denver, Colorado in 1932 to Mabel and Harry Low. His father passed away when Richard was 9 and his mother remarried to Johnny Wong. As the oldest boy of 8 children, his early years were defined by the Great Depression and the difficult struggles that came with working in a Chinese restaurant during this time. Richard and his older sister Gladys worked in Chinese restaurants owned by his stepfather from middle school through college. He often was the one who closed the restaurant at 1 am and then went to school in the morning. Through his effort in the restaurant business, Richard developed a work ethic that would last for the rest of his life.

Richard became the first member of his family to graduate from college. He was awarded an Army ROTC scholarship to the University of Colorado Boulder where he attained a degree in Aeronautical Engineering. After he graduated, he entered the Army as second lieutenant. His first assignment was in Osaka, Japan. He would send a significant portion of his paycheck back home to Denver to help pay his younger siblings college tuition. It was there where he met and married Sachiko Okamoto in 1956. Sachiko left the only home she knew to move to the states. She actively supported his career in the Army and played the main role as caretaker for their three children: Richard Jr., Doug, and Jennifer. Richard had tours in Korea and two in Vietnam. He would be gone for at least an entire year each time. In his twenty years of service, Richard was stationed across the nation ranging from Hawaii, Virginia, Alaska, and Kentucky. He received several commendation awards, including the Bronze Star. Richard attained the rank of Lt. Colonel. After he retired, he taught Junior ROTC at Fort Knox High School. Even after his retirement, his passion and love for his country and the Armed Forces did not diminish.

In 1975, he moved his family to Atlanta where he took on the role of Building Superintendent for the Peachtree Plaza Hotel. At that time it was the tallest hotel in the country. He then worked for several years at National Training Services educating companies about natural gas. He ultimately went to work at Chattahoochee Tech and established the Engineering program. He taught for over 15 years and won several teaching awards.

When his oldest grandson Jack was born in 1998, Richard retired from teaching in order to take care of him with Sachiko. It was a full-time job and became even busier when twins Michael and Matthew were born in 2001.

His grandchildren brought him his greatest joy. He was always the first car in line to pick his boys up in the carpool. He was always teaching them about everything. Jack was able to identify the planes flying overhead by the time he was four years old. Richard would go to their schools to do a program about Chinese New Year’s with gifts for his classmates. He attended every event whether it was baseball, robotics, academic quiz bowl or musicals. At every venue, he had his trusted VCR camera to capture the event on tape. He was kind enough to make DVDs and give them to the parents as well. Even now, the parents ask about him and speak so fondly of him.

Sachiko was diagnosed with uterine cancer which had spread to her lungs in 1993. It progressed in the early 2000s when she became oxygen dependent. Richard dedicated his life to her care. He was a diligent and caring husband during Sachiko’s battle with cancer, taking care of every conceivable need, but still managing to make time for his grandsons.

Following Sachiko’s passing, Richard became an active participant in the Senior Center in Cobb County. His community involvement included ping pong, bowling, Mahjong, and cribbage. He was beloved by his friends because of his kindness and thoughtfulness as well as his infectious affability.

Richard was a true aficionado for knowledge in general - as exemplified by his collection of HowStuffWorks books, encyclopedias, and vast knowledge of how things worked from his own experiences in the Army and civilian life.

He will be fondly remembered for his love of KFC, model building, handiwork, and an appreciation for technology. He could figure out a way to build or fix anything. When Jack said he wanted to be a King Cobra snake for Halloween, he was able to figure out a way to make the most elaborate costume using a batting helmet. He also enjoyed watching USC and CU Boulder football games. He could never be convinced to go out to dinner on football nights in the fall.

He was an amazing cook, having spent his early years working in Chinese-American restaurants. He could make a mean chicken fried steak with gravy that wasn’t lumpy as well as the best Mongolian Beef. His recipe for Chinese Fried Chicken was awarded the Golden Wisk Award from the Atlanta Journal Constitution in 2000 for being one of the top 10 recipes of the year. Richard would make 300 fried wontons every year for Jennifer’s Christmas office party. He would bring potstickers and hot and sour soup to Ken, the family hairdresser. He made elaborate birthday cakes- Jennifer had ones featuring Snow White or Cinderella. The grandsons had homemade Star Wars cakes and others depicting the Battle of Gettysburg or Iwo Jima. He hosted a homemade pizza party for Jennifer ever since they arrived in Atlanta in 1976. The party tradition still goes on with friends from as early as 7th grade still in attendance.

Richard was a storyteller and joyful soul at heart. He loved to share his life experiences with others. He was the most kind and thoughtful person that you would ever meet. He always had a smile on his face. He loved and cared for his family and friends deeply. He was a role model for everyone to see how a life should be lived. He will be deeply missed, but the wonderful memories that he left with his family will live on. He had a hard, difficult life but did his best for his children to have every opportunity available. Richard is survived by two of his children, Douglas Low (Valerie) of Chicago, IL and Jennifer Amerson (Mike) of Atlanta, GA. He is also survived by his three grandchildren: Jack, Matthew, and Michael. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife Sachiko and his son Richard Jr.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at H.M. Patterson and Son - Sandy Springs Arlington at 11 AM on Saturday, November 15th with visitation at 10 am. There will be a reception to follow.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the following:

Kidz Express (www.kidzexpress.org) or Disabled American Veterans (www.DAV.org).

Kidz Express is a non-profit organization that Doug is involved with that Richard strongly supported. Kidz Express works with at-risk youth in the challenging Westside of Chicago. Please go to www.kidzexpress.org to donate.