Duane Floyd Rowley
July 21, 1936 - February 03, 2018
Duane Floyd Rowley was born in Portland, Oregon on July 21, 1936. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on May 24, 1954 and after initial training in Army Artillery, he was sent to his duty station in Darmstadt, Germany. While in Darmstadt, he met his first wife, Katharina, who had been previously married with two children. Duane and Katharina exchanged wedding vows on September 16, 1957 and Duane subsequently adopted her two children, Udo (now goes by Jack) and Rosemarie. Duane and his family spent most of the next eight years on various Army bases in Germany and returned to Fort Sill, in Lawton, OK in the spring of 1965. During those years in Germany, Duane and Katharina had three additional children – Duane, Jr., Steven and Corina.
Following an arduous combat tour in Vietnam from May 1967 to May 1968 where he was awarded a Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Duane returned to Fort Sill and retired from the Army on May 31, 1976, with 22 years of honorable service. Duane was a member of the Masonic Lodge and was very active in the local VFW and American Legion. He then went to work for the U.S. Postal Service in Lawton, OK as a desk agent until he subsequently retired from this second profession.
Following the passing of his wife, Katharina, Duane married his second wife, Doris. They remained in southwest OK with residences in Lawton, Fletcher, Elgin and Chickasha. Duane and Doris enjoyed 17 years of civic service and their love of dancing together. Following a long bout of lung illness attributable to exposure to Agent Orange during his tour in Vietnam, Duane succumbed to his illnesses at his home on February 3, 2018. Duane F. Rowley is survived by his wife Doris, his sons, Jack and Steven and his daughters, Rosemarie and Corina and number of grandchildren. He will also be missed Doris' children, grandchildren and great grandchildren and a host of friends.
He was preceded in death by his wife of forty-two years, Katharina and his son, Duane, Jr.
Funeral Service
Whinery Huddleston Funeral Service
- Monday, February 12, 2018
- 12:00 PM
- 6210 NW Cache Road
Lawton, Oklahoma 73505
- Interment will follow at Fort Sill National Cemetery at 2:00 PM.
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