Our condolences to the family and acquaintances of 52-year-old Todd Bowers, owner of Bowers Towing of Godfrey, IL. He died unexpectedly on Oct. 21. Here’s the story from The Telegraph:

GODFREY – Todd Bowers went to his final resting place with dozens of his friends in tow.

Tow truck drivers from across the region rallied Tuesday for the final farewell to one of their own.

Bowers, the longtime operator of Bowers Towing, was remembered as a “family man” and “successful businessman” by those who knew him. The 52-year-old Godfrey man died Thursday of an apparent heart attack.

Starting about 10 a.m., the first tow truck, a heavy-duty boom truck, pulled into the yard of Bowers Towing, 6204 Godfrey Road. A few minutes later, another truck, a “roll-back,” pulled in.

A few minutes later came another and then another. Within 30 minutes, the yard was full of tow trucks from across the region.

The drivers got out of their rigs and gathered in clusters, waiting for the funeral procession of one of their own.

Family and friends filed into the sanctuary of St. Ambrose Church to pay their final respects. The pews were filled with those saying goodbye.

“Todd was an outstanding person,” the Rev. Steve Pohlman said. “As good as you get.”

Pohlman, who officiated at the service, said everyone had to trust that God took Bowers into safekeeping.

“We’ll see him again one day,” he said. “Our separation is not a permanent one, but a temporary one.”

He said even though Bowers was taken too early in life, it was part of God’s plan.

“There is no detour in dying and the expiration date only God can see,” Pohlman said.

Ruth Guntren, Todd’s mother, said her son both arrived and left this world early. She said her son was born two months premature and died too young.

Bowers took over the towing business in 1985 after his father, Nelson Bowers, died, also at a young age, 49. The Bowers Towing operation has offices in Godfrey and Wood River and operates around the clock.

Todd Bowers was a dedicated son, husband, father and grandfather. He earned his wings as an Eagle Scout, enjoyed cooking for others and had an affinity for BMX racing.

Bowers believed in giving back to his community. He served as a volunteer firefighter for more than 15 years with the Godfrey Fire Protection District and served as president of its board.

While hymns were sung and scriptures were read inside the church, diesel engines hummed as the drivers waited for the procession to pass by the towing company. Nearly three dozen tow trucks created an “honor guard” as the drivers headed south on Godfrey Road to St. Patrick’s Cemetery, where Bowers was laid to rest.

“It’s a sad day for the towing world,” said Steve Kainz, owner of Trickey’s Service Inc. in Wood River.

Kainz was asked to put together the tribute honoring a man “way too young to die.”

“Todd and I had known each other for a long time, and we kind of had this love/hate relationship,” he said. “I was floored and honored when I was asked to put together the procession.”

Kainz contacted towing companies within a 100-mile radius in both Illinois and Missouri to take part in the event.

“It was really impressive,” Kainz said. “So many people gave up their time. They really went above and beyond.”

cellis@thetelegraph.com

From Footnotes TowBlog: Towing News Around The Web
(www.thetowblog.com)
Posted by Cyndi Kight, Associate Editor of Towing and Recovery Footnotes

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Christian Gutierrez rarely got a day off from his job at Coby’s Auto and Wrecker Service.

To maximize their time together, his girlfriend, Maria Cahue, and her 2-year-old daughter, Andrea, would ride in the wrecker with him, Cahue said.

“That’s how we spent our time together, up until that same night,” Cahue said Saturday.

Cahue, 19, said she had just returned home from responding to a call with her 24-year-old boyfriend when he was called to another wreck near Refugio.

Gutierrez, 24, was struck and killed by a UPS tractor-trailer while loading a vehicle at that wreck.

The crash that killed Gutierrez remains under investigation by the Department of Public Safety.

The couple’s one year anniversary was Friday.

On Saturday, Cahue was in Laredo with Gutierrez’s family, preparing for his funeral.

Cahue said the family did not want to talk publicly about Gutierrez.

With nine siblings, Gutierrez was a family man, she said.

“Anything for me and my daughter. He always put us first,” Cahue said.

Over the phone, Andrea could be heard calling for her mother.

“She asks for him,” Cahue said. “She thinks he’s working.”

Gutierrez moved to Victoria almost a year ago to be with his girlfriend and her daughter, Cahue said.

That was after his service as a Marine in Iraq.

“He was a three-time combat veteran. He went overseas more than once,” Cahue said. “He liked serving his country.”

Gutierrez received several military honors, including the Marine Corp. Good Conduct Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with one Star, the Iraq Campaign Medal with one Campaign Star, the National Defense Service Medal and the Rifle Expert Badge, according to his obituary.

He also enlisted in the Marine Corp. Reserve.

Cahue said on a rare day off, Gutierrez would still be putting others before himself, most likely taking Andrea out to have fun.

“We love him. There was not one person that he did not touch, that did not like him,” Cahue said. “He was just very loving.”

Related story:  http://www.kristv.com/news/tow-truck-driver-struck-and-killed-on-highway-77/

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Our condolences to the family and acquaintances of Anton Agurs, owner of Sanctified Towing, who was found shot to death on June 7. Here’s the story from www.myfoxdc.com:

OXON HILL, Md. – Alethea Agurs can remember everything from Tuesday night. It wasn’t unusual for Anton Agurs to get a call for a tow late at night. He owned his own tow truck, naming the business, Sanctified Towing. He came up with the name five years ago in bible study and ran the business from their District Heights home.


“I don’t know exactly what the job was. He received a call to do a tow and he left maybe a little before ten [p.m.] to go and do a tow job,” said his wife.

An hour and a half after he left, Anton Agurs was found dead alongside his tow truck. His wife says he had been shot.

“I’m truly going to miss him. He would do anything for anybody. A family man. All he wanted to do was work for his family. Take care of his family,” his wife said.

Prince George’s County Police found Anton’s body around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, just outside Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm, a national park by the Potomac River in Oxon Hill. The family says the truck’s lights were still flashing. Police say they got a call about a man unconscious in the road. No one seems to know why he was there or if he ever made it to his tow call.

The park closes at 4:30 p.m. The gates are locked and employees leave. There is nothing else around except for the cars speeding by on the beltway nearby.

“This is truly a senseless act. There’s nothing I know that he did to deserve this,” said Alethea.

She says Anton was always careful about who he towed. He worked with auto repair shops, through contracts, did emergency roadside assistance, referrals and repeat business. Anton avoided repossessing cars or other types of towing that might lead to angry confrontations.

Police are still investigating a motive and are not saying if anything was stolen.

“Was it a set up? It very well could have been. Why? I couldn’t tell you,” his wife said, only guessing what might have happened.

Hardest of all has been explaining the murder to their two children.

“I have a 13-year-old daughter and I have a one-year-old son. So of course he doesn’t understand this. My daughter is heartbroken,” she said.

Anton Agurs’ son is named Anton too. What he understands is daddy is gone. Now his family finds strength in what he would tell them.

“Be strong. Live life. Take care of my children. I got your back. It will be alright,” Alethea Agurs can hear her husband saying.

He was a husband, a father, the life of this family now gone.

Read more: http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/maryland/tow-truck-driver-found-shot-to-death-in-oxon-hill-060811#.TfDQNVvH_cs#ixzz1Omr9p3rF

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