Arnold S. Nowlin's Obituary
Arnold S. Nowlin of Gulf Harbour in Ft. Myers passed away after a brief illness on Wednesday, July 26th. Born in 1932 in Bramwell, W. Va., Arnold began his lifelong interest in sports playing baseball and basketball at Bramwell High School. After attending Bluefield State College, Arnold entered the Air Force in 1952 and was stationed in Germany at Neubiberg Air Base, just south of Munich where he worked as a draftsman in engineering and construction for the USAF 86th Fighter Bomber Wing. His service there allowed him to travel all over Europe, usually hitching rides aboard Air Force planes bound for other U. S. bases.
Returning home, Arnold was employed by Kersey Manufacturing Co of Bluefield, Va., helping design machinery and parts for mining equipment. The Baltimore Orioles had a minor league “farm team” in Bluefield. Arnold met many famous Oriole team members and coaches who came to “scout” the team there. He became friends with many Oriole players, including Hall of Fame Members Boog Powell and Brooks Robinson, both on the team that won the World Series in 1966. He stayed in touch when they would come to Ft. Myers in the ‘60’s for Spring Training games.
Arnold met his life-long friend Burl Osborne in the late 1950’s. Osborne was the AP Reporter in Bluefield. Arnold went with Osborne on many reporting assignments, including his coverage of the 1960 West Virginia Primary between Hubert Humphrey and John F. Kennedy. Osborne and Arnold took trips all over southern West Virginia covering that campaign, often traveling on Kennedy’s press bus. Osborne later became President of the Associated Press in New York and then became Publisher of the Dallas Morning News.
Arnold moved to Ft. Myers in 1964 to work for Florida Power & Light in their Engineering Group. Shortly thereafter he married Betty Hart Eaton at the First Christian Church in Ft. Myers, becoming stepfather to her two sons, Jim Eaton and Jon Eaton. Arnold continued his lifelong participation in sports, serving as a volunteer coach for: Ft. Myers Little League baseball teams, the Ft. Myers Rebels football team and as a referee for high school basketball games all over Southwest Florida. In addition, he was the statistician in the Press Box for all the Ft. Myers Green Wave football team games. Arnold spent thousands of hours coaching kids from all over S. W. Florida which he greatly enjoyed.
Spring Training in Ft. Myers gave Arnold an opportunity to stay involved with baseball and his major league friends. He became good friends with several Kansas City Royals team members, including Hall of Fame Member George Brett. Brett was originally from Glen Dale, W. Va. which provided an instant connection to Arnold’s home state. Brett and Arnold spent a lot of time with Brett’s hitting Coach, Charley Lau who also became a lifelong friend.
Arnold left Florida Power & Light and managed a sporting goods store in South Fort Myers, Bud’s Sporting Goods for some years. Then he left that job to become the Manager of the Florida Department of Insurance Consumer Service Office in downtown Ft. Myers, retiring there after 17 years of service.
Arnold made many friends and served the Ft. Myers community as a Member and President of the Ft. Myers Lion’s Club for decades. The Lions focused their help on the visually impaired, providing aid for those with sight problems. Arnold also served on the Board of the Southwest Florida Safety Council which sponsors online driver safety courses, and DUI Courses for impaired drivers.
Since his wife Betty’s death in 1998, Arnold spent his time with his lifelong friend and close companion, Dorothy Rowland, also from Bramwell. They spent summers at her home in the mountains near Athens, W. Va. and winters here in Ft. Myers. Arnold loved all sports but his passion was always the West Virginia Mountaineers football team. He is survived by his two stepsons, Jim Eaton of Bonita Springs, Florida and Jon Eaton and his wife Nancy of Hayesville, N. C. Arnold Nowlin’s family is hosting a celebration of his life and visitation for his friends on Sunday, July 30th between 4 PM and 6 PM. This will be at Memorial Gardens in Ft. Myers on Colonial Boulevard. In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to the Ft. Myers Lions club at their website: www.ftmyerslions.com . The “donate” button is at the top right corner.
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