Lowell Mays

MADISON - Rev. Dr. Lowell H. Mays, of Madison, Wis., passed away peacefully on Sunday, February 23, 2025, at Oakwood Village Lutheran Home, after a brief illness. He was 87.

Lowell Mays was born August 15, 1937, in Toledo, Ohio to David and Veleta (Hoel) Mays, their only child. His early childhood was spent in Lucas and surrounding counties of Northwestern Ohio. He finished high school in Sylvania, Ohio.

In his youth, he was a caddie at the Inverness Club and was shaped in many ways from his experiences with the members and visiting professionals; among them were Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Lloyd Mangrum and Cary Middlecoff. Golf remained an enjoyment for life, both as a player and as a Marshal for PGA tournaments throughout the Midwest. For over 15 years he had been the lead Marshal on the 18th green of the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee.  

Lowell earned the rank of Eagle Scout and received appointments to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, but declined them both as he felt a “higher” calling.

He received undergraduate degrees in psychology and theology from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, attending the University of Toledo in the summers to complete his undergraduate work in three years. Following Capital, he attended Trinity Lutheran Seminary, receiving the Master of Divinity degree. He studied Ecumenical Thought under Gustav Weigel, S. J. at Johns Hopkins University. He was an observer at the Vatican II Council for the Lutheran Church. In 1988, he received an Honorary Doctorate degree from Carthage College. Lowell was the first in his family to attend college. He got scholarships and paid his own way.

Lowell was ordained in Christian Ministry on July 29, 1962, as a Clergyman in the American Lutheran Church and received his first call to Bethlehem Lutheran Church, in Brodhead, Wis., from 1962 - 1967. During his time at Brodhead, he was offered a position as a visiting Professor of Theology at Edgewood College, in Madison, Wis., and made the weekly commute to Madison. Soon after, he received a Danforth Foundation grant to establish and chair the Department of Ecumenical Studies, within the Department of Theology at Edgewood and then moved his family to Madison.

Once settled in Madison, he also became an Associate Campus Pastor and then Senior Pastor and Director of Lutheran Campus Ministry at the University of Wisconsin. Not long after the move, he was asked to join the Dane County Sheriff’s Department and the Madison Police Department as a part-time Chaplain and Jail Minister.

In 1970, he became a Professor at the University of Wisconsin, serving joint appointments in Medicine and Human Oncology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison. He was a clinical staff member of the University Health Service until 1987. In 1974, he was named Director of Human Ecology at Madison General Hospital, also until 1987.

In 1987, he was elected Bishop of the South Central Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, serving until 1991, when he retired from the ministry. Lowell retired with the rank of Captain from the U.S. Naval Reserve, having served on the staff of the Surgeon General of the Navy and on the staff of the Commander, United States Naval Forces-Europe in London.

Retirement didn’t last long. During his life of ministry and counseling, he was constantly being asked by company executives to consult on what he called “Humanist” issues, not bottom-line decisions. He found a niche by providing outside counsel to top executives and leaders on matters they needed to discuss, but couldn’t within the walls of their organizations. He was asked to provide business personality profile assessments, family business succession planning, executive search and confidential executive counsel to CEOs and board members. In response, he formed a one-man consulting business but soon found he needed to bring in partners to service the demand.

Lowell was a principal of Herndon, Mays and Skornicka, a counseling organization to executives and corporations. He also served as Senior Advisor at Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek, S.C., a multi-service law firm. Throughout many years he was a consultant to Meriter Hospital, General Health Services, Wisconsin Physician Service Insurance, the Wisconsin Medical Society, Marshfield Clinic, and multiple banks, credit unions and financial services companies.

He had been a board member of the Wisconsin Division of the American Cancer Society, the Badger Chapter of the American Red Cross, the Wisconsin Eye Bank, Carthage College, Lutheran School of Theology, and Wisconsin Law Enforcement Assistance Network. He was an active member of Blackhawk Country Club, the Madison Club, and The American Legion.

The best word to describe Lowell was that of Counselor: Confidential advisor, deeply intellectual, steadfastly loyal, and had undisputed integrity. He was a leader who lived by lifting up others. The most important thing to Lowell was love and family, and if you were his friend, you were his family. He loved you and you knew it.

Lowell is survived by his wife, Barbara, of 64 years; daughter, Kristen (Bruce) Barge; and sons, David (Cathy) Mays and Stephen (Lisa Pierobon Mays) Mays. Grandchildren include Nathan and Lindsey Barge (fiancé, John Jacobs), Michael and Lauren Mays, and Chiara and Gabriela Pierobon Mays.

A celebration of life will be held at LUTHERAN CHURCH OF THE LIVING CHRIST, 110 N. Gammon Road, Madison, on Saturday, March 22, 2025. Visitation will be from 10 a.m. until 11:15 a.m., with a service to follow at 11:30 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Oakwood Foundation, 6209 Mineral Point Road Suite #200, Madison, WI 53705 or The Cutting Edge Program - Edgewood College, 1000 Edgewood College Drive, Madison, WI 53711.

The family would like to extend their gratitude to staff at Hebron Oaks Skilled Nursing at Oakwood Village who so lovingly cared for Lowell. Online condolences may be made, and memories may be shared at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson West

Funeral & Cremation Care

7435 University Ave.

(608) 831-6761