Greetings! If you check Matthew 28:9, “Greetings” was the first thing Jesus said after he rose from the dead. Good enough for Jesus, good enough for me! I was employed as a teacher for 41 years. The school district honored me by naming our radio studio “The Pete Bowers Studio”. People who see it may ask “who is Pete Bowers and why does he have the studio named after him”. Hopefully, if someone were to Google search my name, they may find this website and see who Pete Bowers is. Oh, and this website has given me something to do while staying home, staying safe during a worldwide pandemic.
With fellow Michigan Broadcasting Hall of Fame inductees Bob Allison and Sheri Jones.
Eternally grateful for those who voted me into the Michigan Broadcasting Hall of Fame! Awards ceremony was held at the Grand Hotel on Mackinaw Island August 14, 2018.
Bio posted on the Michigan Association of Broadcasters website (michmab.com). “Pete Bowers has influenced the lives of hundreds of students as a high school broadcasting educator at WBFH-FM which is owned and operated by the Bloomfield Hills School District. But his 41 years of service and dedication extends well beyond the boundaries of Bloomfield Hills. His students have dominated state and national high school broadcasting award competitions winning MABF Station of the Year 10 times. WBFH students won Best High School Station in the Nation six times, tied with the most of any station in the U.S. Bowers has been honored as Best High School Advisor in the Nation twice.”
From WikiPeteia
Pete Bowers is an American retired high school broadcasting teacher and the former general manager of WBFH-FM, a community radio station owned by the Bloomfield Hills School District in Bloomfield Hills Michigan with studios in Bloomfield Hills High School. Bowers was hired in August, 1976 to manage the new station and teach high school broadcasting courses. WBFH is a non-commercial FM radio station on the air since October 1, 1976. Bowers managed the station for 41 years retiring in June, 2017. Bowers gained national attention when he founded High School Radio Day in 2012, an annual event where high school radio stations in the United States unite to raise awareness of high school radio broadcasting. 83 stations in 31 states participate in High School Radio Day. In 2018, Bowers was inducted into the Michigan Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
Bowers was born in Hutzel Women’s Hospital in Detroit, Michigan April 7, 1953, to Charlotte and Charles LaVerne Bowers. His father was a general practice physician/surgeon, age 35, and his mother was a homemaker, age 36. His mother says he weighed over 10 pounds. We don't know who the doctor was that delivered Pete because we can't read his signature...go figure. He was named after the apostle Peter (the Rock). Pete's first home was 213 Cedardale in Pontiac right behind St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. The next year, 1954, they moved to 199 Barrington Rd. in Bloomfield Hills. He attended public schools: Hickory Grove Elementary School (K-6), East Hills Jr. High (7,8), West Hills Jr. High (9) and Bloomfield Hills Andover High School (10-12). Bowers graduated high school in 1971 serving as class president and winning the Athlete of the Year Award while earning eight varsity letters in soccer, basketball and track. Bowers attended Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, joining the staff of WCHP, the student-run campus radio station where he was a DJ, sports director and sales manager. He graduated in 1975 with a Bachelor of Applied Arts degree majoring in Broadcast and Cinematic Arts and minoring in Photojournalism. In 1992, he received a masters degree from Madonna University with an Educational Leadership specialty. His older brother Jim lives in West Bloomfield. Pete met Claudia Bogard from Allen Park at CMU and, after dating for four years, they married August 11, 1978 in Dearborn, Michigan. They have two sons, Adam (born in 1985) and Eric (born in 1990). Claudia died May 14, 2023 after a four-year battle with kidney cancer. She was 68. Pete’s father died in 1984 (stomach cancer-age 66), his mother died in 2001 (Parkinson’s Disease-age 84), and his brother Tom died in 2016 at age 65 (abdominal aneurysm).
Bowers is 1/8th Chippewa Indian. His great-grandmother on his father’s side was full blooded Chippewa…her name was Mary Wastinarbi and she was born in 1868 in Alcona County. This ancestry fact is not the reason he attended Central Michigan University but it brings a whole new meaning to being a Chippewa!
After Bowers retired in 2017, he and his wife sold their dream house in Milford and moved to Spring Lake, Michigan (near Grand Haven) to be caregivers for Claudia’s mother who was 86 years old and homebound. After taking care of Gladys for four years, she was admitted to a facility that could give her 24 hour care. She died at Heartwood Lodge August 16, 2001 just three days after her 90th birthday.
Both Pete and Claudia were blindsided March 29, 2019, when Claudia’s PCP (Dr. Hoeppner) noted some suspicious things going on in Claudia’s body and ordered a CT scan which lead to the discovery of a four inch tumor in her left kidney which was malignant. In April, 2019, doctors successfully removed the kidney and the tumor. She was doing fine until her annual CT scan in August, 2021, which showed that the cancer had moved to her left lung. In the next nine months, the cancer metastasized to other parts of her body despite take chemo oral meds, infusions, radiation and surgery. She enrolled in Hospice care in April 2023 and passed peacefully at home May 14, 2023 surrounded by me, my sons Adam and Eric and my daughter-in-laws Sarah and Cheryl. She fought a good fight. A Celebration of Claudia’s Life was June 17, 2023 at Lee Chapel in Norton Shores, MI. There were 102 people at the Celebration from nine states and three foreign countries. The Celebration can be seen on YouTube, search Claudia A. Bowers Celebration of Life. Thank you to all of the members of TEAM CLAUDIA for their thoughts and prayers during those nine months dealing with kidney cancer and her death. And thank you Jesus for carrying us through this difficult time!
Bowers began his career with the founding of WBFH, known as “The Biff,” a community radio station that has operated out of Bloomfield Hills High School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan since October 1, 1976. In addition to being its first station manager, he also taught an intro class entitled Fundamentals of Radio Broadcasting and an advanced class entitled WBFH Staff at both Andover and Lahser High Schools (now consolidated into one high school, Bloomfield Hills High School). Bowers maintained this dual position for 41 years, the entirety of his professional career. During his tenure as station manager, WBFH was the recipient of 10 High School Radio Station of the Year awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters and six Best High School Radio Station in the nation awards in the John Drury High School National Radio Awards. Bowers won Best High School Radio Station Advisor in the nation twice. A number of Bowers’ students entered the field of broadcasting and have appeared on television and radio in major markets, including those in the Detroit market: JoAnne Purtan (WOMC Radio - Detroit), Heather Catallo (WXYZ-TV - Detroit), Scott “The Gator” Anderson (97.1 FM The Ticket - Detroit), Jake Neher (former WDET Radio-Detroit) and Matt Friedman (Tanner Friedman, Detroit). See the WBFH Alumni blog for a list of 76 former students who worked in one or more media related professions.
Bowers spent his entire 41 year professional career at one place…the Bloomfield Hills School District. He joins other Detroit sports stars who spent their entire career with the same Detroit sports team: Al Kaline (22 years with the Tigers), Steve Yzerman (23 years with the Red Wings), Jason Hanson (21 years with the Lions) and Isiah Thomas (13 years with the Pistons).
A trip down Memory Lane...
The Hickory Grove Elementary Years 1958-1965 (K-6)
4th and 6th Grade President
Softball League Champion, World Series Softball Champion
School High Jump Champion, 5th Grade and 6th Grade
Safety Patrol Captain
School P.A. Announcer
Kindergarten: Mrs. Panks (who played piano in class…very fun!) 1st Grade: Mrs. Snyder; 2nd Grade Mrs. Morrett; 3rd Grade Mrs. Lendt; 4th Grade Miss Fetrow; 5th Grade Mrs. Boettger; 6th Grade Mrs. Cole. We had 37, yes 37 students in Mrs. Cole’s 6th Grade class. You couldn’t even walk around the class, we were like sardines! I remember her saying “If I get one more student, I’m outta here”. About an hour later, the principal brought in a new student into our classroom. I remember saying, “Mrs. Cole…are you leaving now?”
The Junior High Years (7th and 8th Grade-East Hills '65-'67, 9th Grade-West Hills '67-68)
Flag Football, 7th Grade
Soccer, 8th and 9th Grade
Basketball, 7th, 8th and 9th Grade
Track, 7th, 8th and 9th Grade
9th Grade Class President
Student Council, 9th Grade
Theater, Small part in Good Morning Miss Dove and Our Hearts Were Young and Gay
The High School Years (10th-12th Bloomfield Hills Andover High School '68-'71)
Soccer, 10, 11, 12 (Captain senior year; Team and League leading scorer with 14 goals both junior and senior years, 1st Team, All League, All Area both junior and senior years); Six goals as a sophomore. School record for goals in season (14, twice) and career (34). Team won two league championships, 32 games without a loss.
Basketball, 10 Varsity/JV, 11 Varsity, 12 Varsity (Captain, All League honorable mention). Team won League Championship junior year. Averaged 10 points a game.
Track, 10, 11, 12; 3rd in league in 440 yard run by a nose (51.6) senior year; 3rd in league in 440 yard run junior year. 1st Place in league 880 yard relay and 1st Place in league mile relay. High jump personal best: 6 feet. Team won League Championships junior and senior year.
Received eight varsity letters and won Andover Athlete of the Year 1971.
B-Club (Varsity Club), 10, 11, 12 (Vice President)
Pep Club 10, 11, 12
Student Council 10, 11
Shield Newspaper 10, 11, 12 (Sports Editor)
School Sports Reporter to Birmingham Eccentric Newspaper 11, 12
National Honor Society 11, 12
Hillcrest Yearbook 12 (photographer)
Variety Show 12
Executive Club 12
Class Officer 12 (Class President)
Commencement Speaker 12
When you are Senior Class President, you get to give a speech at Commencement. On the left is Ed Cole, President of General Motors. On the right is my Dad, Dr. Charles Bowers, who was the School Board President. He’s smiling…that’s a good thing!
The Central Michigan University Years (Fall 1971-May 1975)
My ID card…our student number was our social security number which I covered up here. I guess we didn’t worry about people stealing our identity back then.
CMU Mens Soccer (4 year starter): Lead the team in goals Sophomore year (16 goals, 5 assists), Junior year (17 goals, 9 assists in 9 games...injured out for 6 games), Senior year (28 goals, 12 assists). Team record for four years: 36-18-5. CMU school record for goals in a game: 6 goals and 2 assists vs. Northwood 1973 (scored 5 goals vs. Toledo, 4 goals in four games, 3 goals in three games); CMU Mens Soccer record for goals in season (28), goals in career (70), points in season (28 goals + 12 assists=40 points), points in career (70 goals+30 assists=100 points); UM Dearborn Invitational All Tournament Team '73, '74; Tournament Champions '74; Tournament Outstanding Player '74; CMU Mens Soccer MVP '74.
WCHP Radio (1973-75): Disc Jockey, Sales Manager, Sports Director, Sports Talk Show Host, Copywriter. Point guard for WCHP Hitbounds basketball team.
WMHW, 91.5 FM Radio (74-75): Play-by-play announcer for CMU Jr. Varsity basketball games.
Thorpe Hall Vice President (72-73)
Thorpe Hall Dorm Basketball Tournament Champions (72-73)
Graduated in May, 1975 with Bachelor of Applied Arts with Broadcast and Cinematic Arts major and Photojournalism minor.
Teacher’s Certificate and Occupational Education Certificate
Took the education classes needed to get Thirty-Hour Continuing Teacher Certificate from State of Michigan. Certified to teach Speech (BD) and Journalism (BC) Grades 9-12 and All
Subjects Grades 7-8.
March, 2007 Occupational Education Certificate issued by the State of Michigan State Board of Education, Department of Education. Certified in Radio/TV Broadcasting.
Madonna University-Graduate Studies
Masters Degree, Educational Leadership, 1988 – 1992
With the boyz after getting my Masters Degree from Madonna University in Educational Leadership, May 1992.
Family Comes First…The Bowers Party of Four!
Bowers family monument in Wixom Cemetery in Wixom Michigan. A lot of Bowers family members are buried there.
Bowers Party of Four…with Rosie, our beloved border collie!
At School Board meeting receiving Distinguished Service Award.
At Grand Hotel for Michigan Broadcasting Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Christmas 2019.
