Lowell Schleicher

Schleicher, Lowell
Appleton

Lowell Schleicher, 77, co-inventor of the system that is used to produce much of today’s carbonless paper, died at his Appleton home on Monday, June 30, 2003. Director of Basic Research at Appleton Papers from 1973 until his retirement in May 1990, Lowell was a scientist who possessed a passion for research born of an ever-curious, intensely analytical and creative mind coupled with a confident, can-do spirit. Lowell was born December 9, 1925 in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, the son of Carl J. Schleicher and Lois V. French. His younger days were spent riding horseback into the high country surrounding Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Even in his final days, he was helping to advance the science of cancer treatment by participating in a clinical trial of a cancer drug. Lowell was very loyal and supportive of family and friends. He enjoyed people, spirited conversation, and helping others. He was a man of diverse interests from flying private planes to collecting and polishing rough gemstones; from painting Colorado vistas with pastels, to collecting arrowheads and fashioning walking sticks from Central Missouri ash and basswood, from canoeing and fishing in Canada, to hunting deer in Wisconsin, Lowell loved the outdoors as much as he loved the lab. After high school, Lowell enlisted in the U.S. Army, fought with the 89th Infantry in the Battle of the Bulge and was among the first U.S. soldiers to liberate a concentration camp. After the war, Lowell attended Hillsdale College earning a bachelors degree in chemistry in 1950. (He would later receive the Outstanding Alumni of the Year award from Hillsdale in 1971). He went on to earn a master’s degree in colloidal chemistry from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 1951. Later that year, he joined the National Cash Register Corporation (NCR) in Dayton, Ohio as a chemist and together with Barry Green patented the process for manufacturing carbonless paper in 1953. In 1973, he moved to Appleton to become Director of Basic Research at Appleton Papers and with his laboratory colleagues of many years went on to file numerous patents on behalf of the company. In 1972, Lowell was the recipient of an honorary Ph.D. in chemistry from Central State University of Ohio, where he had also served as a Trustee from 1969 to 1972. Outside of work, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Paper Science Foundation of the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, and served as an advisor to Junior Achievement.
He is survived by his daughter Kathy (Don) Oakland of Wausau, his son Chris (Sylvia) Schleicher of Appleton; his grandchildren Sarah and Melissa Oakland of Wausau, Tera (Ben Ipsen) Schleicher of Haverhill, Massachusetts, and Brian and Brenda Baldock of Appleton. Lowell is also survived by his twin sister Lela (Nick) Bosley of Valencia, California; his niece Barbara (Chuck) Swanson of Simi Valley, California, and his nephew Eric (Sandy) Bosley of Washington state. He was preceded in death by his wife Ruth in December of 2001, his parents, and his brother Vernon Schleicher, who died during World War II,
A funeral service will be conducted on Thursday, July 3, 2003 at 7:00 PM at the Wichmann Funeral Home with Rev. Lynn K. Kollath officiating. Interment will take place at Highland Memorial Park in Appleton. Friends may call at the funeral home on Thursday, July 3, 2003 from 4:00 PM until the time of the services. In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund is being established.
WICHMANN FUNERAL HOME
537 North Superior Street
Appleton 739-1231