As the donations on Janet Lowry’s GoFundMe page increased, the full picture of her life—and its impending end—sharpened into focus.
Hundreds of contributions quickly became thousands, with over 400 donations totaling nearly $ 100,000 in support of Janet and her husband, Columbine football coach Andy Lowry, as she approached the final days of a seven-year battle with cancer, much of which she had faced privately.
“I really wish I could repay what these people have done for me in my lifetime,” Janet confided to her longtime friend Monica Kellogg.
In truth, the community was repaying her kindness.
Janet passed away on November 15 at the age of 54, marking the loss of the matriarch of Columbine football and a woman whose influence spanned decades throughout Jefferson County.
She was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017. After undergoing a double mastectomy, she learned two years later that the cancer had spread to her bones. Over the last 18 months, her battle intensified with intravenous chemotherapy and numerous hospital stays. Finally, on her birthday, July 15, doctors informed Janet that she had only two months to live.
She transitioned to home hospice care but ended up living twice as long as the doctors had predicted, granting the Lowry family the most precious gift they could have hoped for in her final days: more time.
“It was a wonderful four months, and some of the happiest I’ve seen her in years,” said Andy Lowry. “We embraced that time. We made a pact in July to live fully, not just to survive. And that’s exactly what we did.”
The Lowrys took several trips to Glenwood Springs, their favorite family vacation destination. Janet organized a special outing with family and friends to Blackhawk to celebrate their daughter Katlyn’s 21st birthday during the first weekend of October. In the Rebels’ regular-season finale on November 1 at Jeffco Stadium, both Columbine and Chatfield played in honor of Janet, participating in a pregame ceremony dedicated to her. Fans from both teams wore teal to symbolize her battle against metastatic cancer.
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