Rene Bowie
Passed away Oct. 7, 2014. She was 93. Rene was born in London, England. A dressmaker by trade, but during WWII she worked 12-hour days making bullets in a government munitions factory for the war effort in London. Between the air raids, blackouts and bombings in London, she met William H. Bowie, who was in the U.S. Army doing some R&R in England at a dance as he was being deployed to Italy and North Africa. After the war, Willy sent for her and they were married a short time later. They made their home in the Sunset District, S.F.
Most of her family was killed in Poland during the Holocaust, but her father and mother moved to England before WWII. She loved this country and became a U.S. citizen. Rene worked making knit dresses for socialites and later worked at Macy’s Union Square in S.F. for 30 years until Willy became ill; she took care of him until he passed away after 46 years of marriage.
Rene was in the British War Bride Association and was a wonderful cook and baker; she sewed clothes and donated her time to the Westlake Senior Citizen Center. She leaves behind a daughter Loretta (Lori) Bowie and her partner Al Martinez.
My mother was my strength when my son was deployed to Iraq with the Marines; she had lived in a country that was in war and that gave her an iron will to get through tough times.
Her two grandsons David Parrish (and fiancée Courtney) and Adam Parrish, both of Pacifica, will miss her. She doted on them and was very proud of the men they became. They had a special bond with Ma Ma Ma Rene and they spent lots of time at her bedside; she was in peace. I would like to thank Pathways Hospice for the comfort they gave my mother and the tender care she received from Three Bells of Montara Assisted Living. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the USO and never forget those who serve.
Services for Rene were held on Oct. 10, 2014 at Eternal Home Cemetery, Colma, Calif.
Duggan’s Serra Mortuary (650) 756-4500
H. Thomas Stein
Sept. 17, 1931–Oct. 6, 2014
Devoted husband of 56 years to Madlyn Wolfe Stein; beloved father to Ellen and Frederick (Julie Pitta); and grandfather to Joshua and Emma Miller, and Olivia Stein.
Born in Schweinfurt, Germany, Tom survived the Holocaust as a hidden child in Holland, eventually immigrating to the United States in 1949. A proud graduate of Swarthmore College, he attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania. Tom was a dedicated and gifted psychiatrist who helped many during his lifetime.
A man of great warmth and humor, he will be terribly missed by family, friends, colleagues and patients. Donations in Tom’s name may be made to Congregation Sherith Israel of San Francisco.