Bobby Eugene Bowers was the only child of Elmer L. and Elizabeth Bowers born 12 APR 1933 in Bokoshe, Leflore County Oklahoma. Bobby attended Bokoshe Elementary School until the family moved to Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara County California about 1945. Elmer found a job working in the Quick Silver mine near Santa Barbara and Elizabeth worked as a waitress in a local cafe. The family moved to Palm City, San Diego County, California where his grandparents Willie D. Bowers and Katie D. (Smith) Bowers had found good employment. Soon after, Elmer Bowers purchased land in what was then Palm City on Palm Avenue, San Diego County, California. Elmer and Willie worked hard to build a good home for Elmer and his family. Elmer and Willie later built three more homes on the land which Elmer and Elizabeth used as rentals and later for Bobby's family. Elmer and Willie built a fourth home on 15th Street across Palm Avenue where Bobby's family would later live. Bobby attended school at Emory Elementary School on the corner of Palm Avenue and 19th Street in Palm City, later to become Imperial Beach. Bobby attended High School at Brown Field on the Otay Mesa where classes were held in old aircraft hangers pending the completion of construction of Mar Vista High School in Imperial Beach. Bobby met Barbara Jean Baker, the daughter of Ralph Julian Baker and Catherine Elizabeth (Twitty) Baker at Brown Field High School. Following graduation on 2 Feb 1952 Bobby Bowers married Barbara Jean Baker at Saint James Lutheran Church in Imperial Beach, San Diego County, California. Bobby worked at Johnnie's Market on the corner of 13th and Palm Avenue in Imperial Beach as a Butcher. Bobby had worked there for several years as a "Bag Boy" in High School. Bobby left Johnnie's Market and went to work for Rohr Aircraft in San Diego. He later landed a higher paying job as a Tool and Die Maker at Convair Aerospace in San Diego. The family was finally in an economic position to purchase a home and moved into a brand new house on Beverly Avenue in Imperial Beach. Unfortunately, the bottom fell out of the Aeronautics Industry in San Diego but was still going strong in Los Angeles. Bobby landed a job as a Tool and Die Maker at Lockheed Aircraft and the family moved to Sunland in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles where they rented a home for about a year. The family car, an old Ford Station Wagon, was in a state of disrepair with failing brakes. We had some wild rides with my sister and I in the back seat. The family was eventually able to buy a home in a better neighborhood in Van Nuys, Los Angeles. But the Aerospace Industry in Los Angeles also started to fail and after months of lay offs Bobby and Barbara decided to return to Imperial Beach where he would work as the Manager of his Father-in-Law's Hardware store; Baker's Hardware and T.V. located at 1313 13th Street in Imperial Beach. Bobby and Barbara lived in a two story apartment built by Ralph Baker behind the store. Within a few years Bobby was again financially able to buy a home and purchased a house at 1461 14th Street in Imperial Beach, a block away from Ream Field Naval Air Station. At that time the streets were unimproved dirt roads and there was no sewer system. During the years we lived there the sewer system was installed, sidewalks were poured and the street was leveled, graded and asphalt paved. Bobby received an invitation to work for Frazee Paint and Supply in Mira Mar, San Diego County and he accepted the position as Salesman and left Baker's Hardware. Bobby excelled in sales and soon became a lead salesman in automotive coatings. He had a huge sales area which included all of San Diego and Imperial Counties. The drive to and from Northern San Diego every day started to be bothersome and the family was on the move again. about 1972. Bobby and Barbara purchased another brand new home on Maryearl Lane in Poway, San Diego County, California. Poway was a two horse town at that time but had a pretty good High School located between the retirement community of Rancho Bernardo and Poway. Barbara had graduated from Southwestern Junior College with an A.A. and her Occupational Therpist Aid Certificate. She was working at Childrens Hospital in Claremont just south of Mira Mar. Barbara worked her way up to a Registered Occupational Therapist. She was also very gifted as an Artist and began making jewelry. She sold her hand made designs at The Loft in Escondido and very soon got her husband Bobby involved. Together they decided that they could make a living in the Jewelry business and Bobby left Frazee Paint. Bobby and Barbara sold the house in Poway and moved into a house built by Ralph Baker in Salton City, Imperial County, California where they continued to manufacture Jewelry designs in Gold and Silver. Business got good and they leased a shop in a mall in Borrego Springs in the North East corner of San Diego County. After their first year in business they leased a new shop location with more space. Bobby and Barbara both attended courses in Jewelry Design, Goldsmithing and precious stones at the Gemological Institute of America. Bobby earned a Certificate as a Master Goldsmith and Barbara earned a Certificate as a Gemologist. The family did very well in business until Bobby had a massive heart attack while on vacation in Eastern Arizona. He underwent multiple bypass surgery and lasted another month until he passed away in the hospital in Phoenix, Arizona 24 Sep 2000. Bobby was a wonderful, loving father and loved fishing and mining for gemstones.