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The driver of a vehicle in which five family members were traveling when it was struck from behind Oct. 30 apparently lost all brain function and was waiting for his organs to be harvested, a family member said on Monday, Dec. 2.
Joseph Lowry, 53, of Villas, had been transferred to an acute rehab facility in Vineland, where he celebrated Thanksgiving with family members. According to Mark Shepherd, Lowry’s brother-in-law, the family then received a phone call around 1 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 29, telling them he was found with no heart or brain function.
Shepherd’s daughter, Alexandre Shepherd, 37, also of Villas, was a passenger in the vehicle and was also seriously injured. Both Lowry and Shepherd went through surgeries at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, and both were admitted to acute rehab.
“We had just had Thanksgiving with him, he ate a full meal, we took pictures, and he was smiling and talking about getting out of rehab,” Mark Shepherd said.
Family members had spent a few hours visiting with Lowry, and some of the young men in the family were working on Lowry’s home to make it able to accommodate his wheelchair. Both of Lowry’s legs were broken in the accident. He also suffered other broken bones and a broken vertebra.
“He was excited to be going home soon,” Shepherd said.
Lowry and his wife, Jen, had traveled to Washington Township to pick up their niece, Alexandre, along with her two daughters. The day before, Oct. 29, Shepherd’s car was stopped behind a left-turning car when her car was rear-ended by an inattentive driver.
On Oct. 30 Shepherd was riding in the front seat with her uncle, who was driving, because one of her legs was immobilized due to the accident the day before. Her aunt, Jen Lowry, was in the back seat with the two girls.
They were on Route 347 in Maurice River Township when at 3:27 a.m. the Lowrys’ 2013 Volvo XC6 was struck from behind by a 2007 Subaru Legacy. The Volvo went off the right side of the road and struck a tree. Shepherd said the family was told that the Lowry vehicle was traveling at 56 mph before being hit but was doing 64 mph when it struck the tree.
According to the preliminary State Police accident report, obtained by the Shepherd family and provided to the Herald, the driver, Joseph Orozco, 21, of Rio Grande, was “suspected to be under the influence of alcohol.” The accident said neither Orozco nor his two passengers were injured. The accident report said a search warrant was obtained for a sample of Orozco’s blood for toxicological analysis, the results of which are apparently still pending.
The accident report listed summonses issued to Orozco for operating a motor vehicle under the influence and possession of an open container in a motor vehicle. The narrative of the police report also lists additional citations for reckless driving.
The State Police would not confirm the report, saying the accident was still under investigation.
All five occupants of the Volvo were taken to the hospital. Jen Lowry and her niece’s daughters were subsequently released, while Joe Lowry and Alex Shepherd remained in Cooper going through multiple surgeries. Shepherd, her father said, is now home. Her teenage daughter had to return to the hospital for treatment and is likewise now home, but unable to attend school for the time being.
Mark Shepherd said the family received assistance for Thanksgiving from a local church and from the local Elks organization.
A GoFundMe page for Joe Lowry has raised $38,635 toward a $40,000 goal as of Tuesday morning, Dec. 3. A GofundMe page for Alexandre Shepherd has raised $$18,020 toward a goal of $20,000 as of that date.
Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or 609-886-8600, ext. 128.
