Donald Alexander Lowrie

Donald A. Lowrie (1889-1974)

Before World War I, Lowrie worked as the Assistant Secretary in the Cleveland YMCA and as Membership Secretary in the Association in Hamilton, Ohio. In 1916, Lowrie volunteered for service in Russia as a War Prisoners' Aid Secretary for Central Power POW's in Siberia. After the United States entered the war, Lowrie became the General Secretary of the Odessa and Moscow Associations from 1917 to 1918. He transferred to Archangel in northern Russia in 1918 to work with White Russian and Allied soldiers. Lowrie moved again in 1919, working as a Student Secretary for Russian students in Russia, Germany, and the Baltic States. Beginning in November 1919, he supervised WPA operations in Germany for Russian prisoners of war. This work included establishing educational, religious, and recreational work for these stranded prisoners. Lowrie also worked at Stettin supporting repatriation operations for the exchange of Russian and Central Power prisoners via Baltic ports. From 1922 to 1928, Lowrie served in Czechoslovakia, working with Russian students for the first three years and then leading student work across the republic. In 1928, he transferred to Yugoslavia to supervise student work in that kingdom. Lowrie retired from the YMCA in 1932 and became the Director of the United States House at the Cité Université in Paris. The approaching world war and rising wave of refugees convinced Lowrie to return to the YMCA in 1938. He worked with Paul B. Anderson to provide American Association relief to Russian, Czech, and Bulgarian refugees in France. Lowrie remained in France until October 1942, when he relocated to Switzerland to provide YMCA services to refugees there. From 1945 to 1950, Lowrie represented the World's Committee of the World's Alliance of YMCA's in relief work for displaced persons in France.