Newton Doran Bowdan

Newton Doran Bowdan, MD

Newton D. Bowdan passed away on November 23rd. He was born on either May 23rd or May 26th, 1933, the only child of Hilda Lichtman and Murray Bowdan. He grew up in Washington, D.C., close enough to the zoo to hear the lions roaring at night. He was adored by his parents, grandparents, and four maternal uncles—Paul, Ben, Jerry and Irving Lichtman.


He was a boarding student at the Bullis School (a naval academy prep school in Silver Spring, MD) where he and his roommate kept hamsters in the bureau. His father brought him home when, after he broke his leg playing halfback on the high school football team, the coach told him to run it off. Irving taught him to drive, and he got a 1950 Chevy when he was 16, a black 6-cylinder motor 3-speed manual on the steering column; the vacuum ran the windshield wipers except when it didn’t work.

Newton earned a B.A. in English from Penn State (class of ’55), then worked on a degree in Philosophy at Columbia from 1955-1956 before going to Baylor University College of Medicine in Texas, where he almost stepped on a water moccasin sunning itself at second base. At medical school he met lifelong friends Martin Chipman (and thereby Shirley and Hank Keezing) and Claire Plunguian (and thereby Edith and Otto Frank), having parties where he cooked sukiyaki if someone else chopped everything up for it first.

He interned at George Washington University Hospital in medicine and surgery, then enlisted in the Air Force as a Captain, requesting to be stationed at Westover when the recruiting officer described the area as having lots of coeds. He called this the “Best thing in my life,” because, while dining at Mt. Holyoke College’s Bookshop Inn, he saw Elizabeth Segal and asked the landlady, “who is that beautiful girl with the phony English accent?” After several long phone conversations where she explained she was too busy to date because she was working on her M.A. in biology, he told her he didn’t think she wanted to go out with him, and she said, “No, no, I’ll go out with you!” After five dates, he proposed to her; she accepted on the seventh date, writing her parents in England, “I’m getting married. Please arrange the wedding. P.S. He’s Jewish, of course.” Taking an Air Force flight to get to England for the wedding, he was stranded in Newfoundland when the plane was re-routed, so he called Uncle Irv, who called a General he knew, and the General got Newton on the next flight out just in time for his wedding.

After a year in South Hadley, when their daughter Janet was born, they moved to Buffalo where he interned at SUNY Medical Center for two and a half years, then to Alexandria, Virginia, where he was a Resident in Psychology for a year, and then to Cottingham, Yorkshire, where he was a Registrar in Psychology at Delapole for a year.

On returning to the United States, the family settled in South Hadley. Initially working at Springfield Hospital, Newton soon started a private practice in Holyoke (ably assisted by Dorothy and Mary Jean), while also doing rounds at Holyoke Hospital, Providence Hospital, the Veterans’ Home in Holyoke, and the local nursing homes. He retired from private practice in 2000 but worked half-time in the prison system in Connecticut until 2010. He continued to have an ear to lend and a potential diagnosis (usually correct) to give.
Newton loved reading and discussing Tolkien and Harry Potter as much as his medical journals. An avid athlete, he was fascinated by the martial arts and studied judo, kung fu, and karate, achieving a 3rd degree black belt in Shito-Ryu karate under Barbara Arrighi’s tutelage. For decades, he worked out at the Holyoke Y and jogged 6 miles a day, startling South Hadley residents with his bright orange shorts and fuzzy pink hat. He celebrated his 59th anniversary with Elizabeth in 2021, a month before her death. He continued to live in their home, learning how to do laundry, cook, and make salad, though he was always delighted when friends or family suggested they eat out (preferably sashimi with a gasp-inducing amount of wasabi).

He leaves behind his daughter, Janet, her husband Blair Barondes, grandson Noah, and many dear friends and family.

A graveside service will be held at 1 pm on Sunday, November 26th, at the Rodphey Shalom Cemetery. For shiva information, please contact the family.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts or Lander-Grinspoon Academy would be welcome.

For further information, please visit ascherzimmerman.com.