Lowell C. Bolger graduated from Moorhead High School in 1954. During high school he earned all-conference basketball honors twice and helped Moorhead High advance to both basketball and baseball state tournaments. Bolger earned his bachelor’s degree in social studies and physical education from Moorhead State Teachers College, now Minnesota State University Moorhead, in 1958. During college, he played basketball finishing his career with 1,278 points.

Bolger began his teaching and coaching career in Hawley, Minn. He was named head coach at Hawley High School in 1958. He coached the team to the 1959 Minnesota State High School Tournament when it was a one-class system. After three years, he returned to MSUM for his master’s degree in health before moving to Duluth East High School to teach and coach.

In 1966 Bolger began teaching and coaching for Moorhead Area Public Schools. He was assistant basketball coach at Moorhead High School until 1982 and retired from teaching in 1993. He coached one year under Shocky Strand and then under Bill Quenette. The team made it to the state tournament Bolger’s first year.

While teaching physical education at Probstfield Elementary, Bolger began playing games with special education students during his lunch. He took a proposal to the School Board and was instrumental in bringing adapted physical education to Moorhead Area Public Schools.

Later Bolger and others raised funds to take special education students swimming, bowling, to the YMCA, and to Camp Confidence in Brainerd, Minn. He worked as co-director for Minnesota Special Olympics, helping host state and regional meets locally for many years. More recently Bolger has worked part time in crop insurance, and he remains an avid basketball fan. Bolger was named to the North Dakota Fast Pitch Softball Hall of Fame in 1979 and inducted to the MSUM Dragons Hall of Fame in 1988.

Lowell and his wife, Priscilla, live in Moorhead, Minn. They have three children, sons Jeff and Joe and daughter Kim, and five grandsons, Austin, Ben, Jordan, Max and Sam.