Col. Karl Lowe, 71

Colonel Karl Lowe, USA, Ret., former Director of Institute for Defense Analysis (IDA) Joint Warfighting Division, passed away at home on Friday, November 7, after a hard fight against Glioblastoma Stage 4 cancer of the brain.

Karl joined IDA in 1993 after a 32-year career in the United States Army. He was born in Germany during World War II, the son of Jacob Westenburger and Margarit Schrienamacher (Voorhies). Jacob was killed in the war and his mother remarried an American Army non-commissioned officer after the war. Karl was raised and educated at a series of Army posts, in the United States, Japan, and Germany.

Karl was a high-school senior in Tallahassee, Florida, when the Berlin Crisis of 1961 made armed conflict seem a possibility. Eager to do his part, Karl enlisted in his local Army Reserve tank battalion. The Berlin Crisis soon passed, but others loomed, and while in basic training, Karl enlisted in the Regular Army for a three-year tour in the Infantry. He attended Officer Candidate School, was commissioned in the infantry, and served two tours in Vietnam, where he was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star with Valor, four Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts for combat wounds received. The infantry company Karl commanded during the Cambodian Incursion of May 1970 was featured in Keith Nolan’s book, Into Cambodia.

Along the way he married his high-school sweetheart Sandy, and with her raised two daughters and a son. He earned two Army-funded degrees in political science at the University of Alabama and served in Germany in both troop and staff assignments, including a tour as the Assistant Political Advisor to the Commander in Chief, US Army, Europe. Back in the United States, he commanded a mechanized infantry battalion at Fort Riley, Kansas; was Chief of the Strategy Division in the Joint Staff’s Directorate for Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5); was a Senior Fellow at the Institute for National Strategic Studies; was Chief of the Arms Control Division in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans on the Army Staff; and was a Special Assistant for Strategy in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.

Upon his retirement from the Army in 1993, Karl joined Institute for Defense Analysis (IDA) as a Research Staff Member in the Strategy, Forces, and Resources Division. There he contributed to and led tasks addressing biological and chemical warfare threats; intelligence support to deployed forces; and measures to alleviate stress on the Army caused by high personnel tempo. Of special note were a comprehensive analysis he led of the Unified Command Plan, and a related analysis he co-authored of Overseas Presence—both for the Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces. Also of note was the role Karl played in bringing peace and stability to the Balkans following the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. Horrified by the affronts to humanity taking place, Karl used his influence and contacts to advocate for more forceful peacemaking efforts. When US diplomacy and military operations finally succeeded in making a peace agreement possible, Karl helped secure the peace as a member of the IDA team that advised the Bosnian Federation on new defense laws and education in civil-military norms.

In 1998, the Joint Advanced Warfighting Program (JAWP) was established at IDA to stimulate improvements in joint military capabilities. Karl was a plank-owner—one of the original volunteers from across IDA who were drawn by the possibility of working alongside active duty military officers in joint assignments, developing joint concepts and designing experiments to test their value and effectiveness. Soon thereafter, Karl became the Assistant Director, and Ted Gold, who founded the JAWP, remembers him this way:

I did not know Karl before 1997 when I arrived at IDA to direct the newly created Joint Advanced Warfighting Program (JAWP). Therefore I did not know how lucky I was to find that he had been assigned by General Welch to help in the start-up. Karl certainly possessed the intellect, integrity and initiative expected of IDA staff. However, he brought much more to our team and he became JAWP’s Assistant Director. An example of Karl’s contributions was his unique ability to relate to the dozens of active duty military who served in the JAWP over the years. He had their respect and thus greatly boosted the program’s credibility with the military members.

I will miss this caring and talented man who I came to love and admire as a friend and colleague.

In 2003, Karl succeeded Dr. Gold as the JAWP Director. In 2004, IDA’s Simulation Center, formerly a separate division, was integrated with the JAWP, and in 2007 the combined organization was designated the Joint Advanced Warfighting Division (JAWD). Karl continued to lead the JAWD until 2009, when he retired from his management position but stayed engaged as an Adjunct Research Staff Member.

During his tenure as a member of the JAWP/JAWD, Karl served as coach and counselor to a succession of military officers who went on to serve in key positions in the Armed Forces of the United States, several of them as general officers. He was equally instrumental in mentoring the division’s research staff, encouraging participation in IDA-supported education programs and other professional development activities. Throughout his twenty-four year association with IDA, Karl touched the lives of many. His friends and those who consider him their mentor are legion, and spread across the globe. He will be missed.

In addition to his friends in the military and at IDA, Karl Lowe leaves his wife of almost 51 years, Sandy, mother Margarit Voorhies, sister Kathleen Herron, daughters Liz and Paige, son Kris, and 9 grandchildren (Brandon, Forrest, Joshua, Kelsey, Ashley, Natalie, Keira, Gianna, and Aida)

There will be a Memorial Service for Karl on Sunday, November 16, at 3 p.m. at Fairfax Memorial, 9902 Braddock Road, Fairfax, VA 22032. Burial with full military honors will follow at Arlington National Cemetery at a date to be determined.

Karl’s awards include:

Silver Star, Defense Superior Service Medal (1OLC), Legion of Merit, Bronze Star (3OLC), Bronze Star w Valor Device, Purple Heart (1OLC), Meritorious Service Medal (3OLC), Air Medal (7), Army Commendation Medal (1OLC), Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal w Bronze Star, Vietnam Service Medal (5), Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation, Combat Infantry Badge, Army Staff Identification Badge, Joint Chief of Staff Identification Badge, Office of the Secretary of Defense Staff Identification Badge

In lieu of flowers the family asks that you donate money to the Wounded Warrior Project.