Celebration of a life too short - Dr. Neil Bower
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As some of you have recently heard, my younger brother, Neil, passed away tragically and unexpectedly at home leaving behind his loving wife, three young sons and our elderly father. This campaign is to help his wife and sons in this difficult time and to memorialize his dedication to science.
Science and molecular biology was Neil's life and his passion. He put everything into it, maybe too much. He cared deeply about the problems facing the world and its people more than anyone I know, and probably more than himself. He was selfless and humble in his pursuit of a better world. He worried deeply about our future food security, our greater health, brain disease, stroke, and cancer. He took it upon himself to be a part of the solution and with a PhD under his belt, he embraced things head-on. From studies in the sunshine of the University of Queensland in Australia to taking his young family to foggy St. Andrews University in Scotland and back again, he conducted beautiful science, never giving up, sharing his knowledge, making us better. I'm so proud of him, his work, his dedication, his family, and now his legacy.
Neil was amazing in ways I admired but could probably never hope to understand in his field. I hope he knew that. We talked about the highs and lows of complex lab-work and his days spent craning into imaging systems and microscopes to peer into the inner workings of the intricacies of life. He was always on, always trying new ways. Even on the morning of his passing, he was in the lab, monitoring and conducting experiments at the University of Queensland Institute for Molecular Bioscience with the amazing team at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Center in Melbourne, advancing cardiac and cancer research for a better future for us all.
He was my little brother, but a man with a huge heart and his passing is an incredible loss to our family and to the wider world of molecular biology and scientific research.
He was just 46. Please help us raise money to help support his wife and three young children to get through this difficult time. I want to make sure they can live proudly in his footsteps with the opportunities Neil was able to take, equally, as they grow up without the burden and strain of his passing. All proceeds will go to his wife for any unexpected costs, their children's future, and their care. If success permits, and with the help of his colleagues in academia and in particular his IMB team peers Dr Ben Hogan and Dr Anne Lagendijk, we would also like to memorialize Neil's science and research with a lecture series, a lab name, or a similarly appropriate testament in his name. Pure scientific research is the key to our future, and I cannot think of a higher honor.
We would appreciate anything you can give - no matter how small. Money can never replace Neil nor can a value be put on a priceless life passed.
From the bottom of my heart, huge thanks in advance to Neil's peers, the global scientific research community, our family, friends and co-workers. Please note the currency is in USD Dollars as I live here, helping those on the ground in Australia by care-taking this process.
Sincerely,
Mark Bower
#lifeofneilbower
A few notes, links, Neil's profile and kind words from his peers from my recent outreach.
https://imb.uq.edu.au/profile/188/neil-bower
https://imb.uq.edu.au/article/2017/05/scientists-surprised-discover-lymphatic-scavenger-brain-cells
https://www.thewire.org.au/story/can-zebrafish-help-us-understand-human-brain/
https://dev.biologists.org/content/144/3.cover-expansion
"Neil was an extraordinarily good colleague and friend as well an exceptional scientist. He made a major contribution to my research group whilst he was in St Andrews. I have had few colleagues who were so even headed, talented and reliable. His early passing will be a great loss to many people." - Ian A. Johnston FRSE, Professor of Biology, Scottish Oceans Institute.
"A party didn't really get started until Neil turned up. I remember some great nights in St Andrews and Edinburgh with him. It was that same vibrance that lit up his scientific work, that also defined him socially - full of life. " - Tom Ashton, COO and Co-founder, Xelect.
"He was a brilliant scientist – the single most talented lab person I ever worked with – always a creative idea and solution for every problem. He was also tremendously hard working, never out the lab for more than a day! We shared an interest in football and spent time not talking science mulling over the premier league or our fantasy footie teams. We also played football together many times, a hobby where Neil was talented. Its fair to say we shared many hangovers. He was just a tremendous bloke on so many levels. At the start of the COVID pandemic, he emailed to exchange data and ideas in relation to his suspicions about the virus sequences origins. Sums him up perfectly as a scientist." - Professor Daniel J. Macqueen, Personal Chair of Integrative Fish Genomics, The Roslin Institute, Edinburgh.
"For me personally Neil has been my rock solid work mate who would always go out of his way to help. Simply such a great guy with a kind heart. I can not imagine an IMB without him there. So many people from within IMB/UQ/CSIRO have reached out to me in the last few days and shared their own stories. It is abundantly clear he has left such a great impression to a wide network of people." - Dr Anne Lagendijk, IMB, University of Queensland.
"Neil was an intelligent and creative scientist, he loved his science and was passionate about improving the world through generating new knowledge. He was one of the most intuitive geneticists I’ve known and easily the best molecular biologist I’ve ever worked with. It was difficult at times that he worked for me and I had to be the “boss” because we also had so much in common and we were natural friends. Neil has been a true mate now over many years. This I think made us a great team and has led to some stunning science over the years from his work. He was messaging me on [the morning before he passed] as he was writing up a new paper he was very proud of (beautiful work)." - Professor Ben Hogan, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne.
Science and molecular biology was Neil's life and his passion. He put everything into it, maybe too much. He cared deeply about the problems facing the world and its people more than anyone I know, and probably more than himself. He was selfless and humble in his pursuit of a better world. He worried deeply about our future food security, our greater health, brain disease, stroke, and cancer. He took it upon himself to be a part of the solution and with a PhD under his belt, he embraced things head-on. From studies in the sunshine of the University of Queensland in Australia to taking his young family to foggy St. Andrews University in Scotland and back again, he conducted beautiful science, never giving up, sharing his knowledge, making us better. I'm so proud of him, his work, his dedication, his family, and now his legacy.
Neil was amazing in ways I admired but could probably never hope to understand in his field. I hope he knew that. We talked about the highs and lows of complex lab-work and his days spent craning into imaging systems and microscopes to peer into the inner workings of the intricacies of life. He was always on, always trying new ways. Even on the morning of his passing, he was in the lab, monitoring and conducting experiments at the University of Queensland Institute for Molecular Bioscience with the amazing team at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Center in Melbourne, advancing cardiac and cancer research for a better future for us all.
He was my little brother, but a man with a huge heart and his passing is an incredible loss to our family and to the wider world of molecular biology and scientific research.
He was just 46. Please help us raise money to help support his wife and three young children to get through this difficult time. I want to make sure they can live proudly in his footsteps with the opportunities Neil was able to take, equally, as they grow up without the burden and strain of his passing. All proceeds will go to his wife for any unexpected costs, their children's future, and their care. If success permits, and with the help of his colleagues in academia and in particular his IMB team peers Dr Ben Hogan and Dr Anne Lagendijk, we would also like to memorialize Neil's science and research with a lecture series, a lab name, or a similarly appropriate testament in his name. Pure scientific research is the key to our future, and I cannot think of a higher honor.
We would appreciate anything you can give - no matter how small. Money can never replace Neil nor can a value be put on a priceless life passed.
From the bottom of my heart, huge thanks in advance to Neil's peers, the global scientific research community, our family, friends and co-workers. Please note the currency is in USD Dollars as I live here, helping those on the ground in Australia by care-taking this process.
Sincerely,
Mark Bower
#lifeofneilbower
A few notes, links, Neil's profile and kind words from his peers from my recent outreach.
https://imb.uq.edu.au/profile/188/neil-bower
https://imb.uq.edu.au/article/2017/05/scientists-surprised-discover-lymphatic-scavenger-brain-cells
https://www.thewire.org.au/story/can-zebrafish-help-us-understand-human-brain/
https://dev.biologists.org/content/144/3.cover-expansion
"Neil was an extraordinarily good colleague and friend as well an exceptional scientist. He made a major contribution to my research group whilst he was in St Andrews. I have had few colleagues who were so even headed, talented and reliable. His early passing will be a great loss to many people." - Ian A. Johnston FRSE, Professor of Biology, Scottish Oceans Institute.
"A party didn't really get started until Neil turned up. I remember some great nights in St Andrews and Edinburgh with him. It was that same vibrance that lit up his scientific work, that also defined him socially - full of life. " - Tom Ashton, COO and Co-founder, Xelect.
"He was a brilliant scientist – the single most talented lab person I ever worked with – always a creative idea and solution for every problem. He was also tremendously hard working, never out the lab for more than a day! We shared an interest in football and spent time not talking science mulling over the premier league or our fantasy footie teams. We also played football together many times, a hobby where Neil was talented. Its fair to say we shared many hangovers. He was just a tremendous bloke on so many levels. At the start of the COVID pandemic, he emailed to exchange data and ideas in relation to his suspicions about the virus sequences origins. Sums him up perfectly as a scientist." - Professor Daniel J. Macqueen, Personal Chair of Integrative Fish Genomics, The Roslin Institute, Edinburgh.
"For me personally Neil has been my rock solid work mate who would always go out of his way to help. Simply such a great guy with a kind heart. I can not imagine an IMB without him there. So many people from within IMB/UQ/CSIRO have reached out to me in the last few days and shared their own stories. It is abundantly clear he has left such a great impression to a wide network of people." - Dr Anne Lagendijk, IMB, University of Queensland.
"Neil was an intelligent and creative scientist, he loved his science and was passionate about improving the world through generating new knowledge. He was one of the most intuitive geneticists I’ve known and easily the best molecular biologist I’ve ever worked with. It was difficult at times that he worked for me and I had to be the “boss” because we also had so much in common and we were natural friends. Neil has been a true mate now over many years. This I think made us a great team and has led to some stunning science over the years from his work. He was messaging me on [the morning before he passed] as he was writing up a new paper he was very proud of (beautiful work)." - Professor Ben Hogan, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne.
Organizer
Mark Bower
Organizer
Milton, MA
