Lowell Greenbaum, who became a Democratic Party stalwart after retiring as a dean at the Medical College of Georgia, died Tuesday after a brief illness. He was 94.
A native of New York, Greenbaum joined the faculty of the Medical College of Georgia in 1979 and served as vice president for research and dean of the School of Graduate Studies from 1985 to 1994.
By 1992, Greenbaum was entrenched in Democratic Party politics. He and his wife, Gloria, offered their pontoon to drive nominee Bill Clinton down the Savannah River to the Jessye Norman Amphitheater.
The crowd went wild and a photo ran in newspapers nationwide, Greenbaum said in a 2016 interview. A week later, Clinton won Georgia and the presidency.
It was one of several “wins” Greenbaum would have as a party official, he said after becoming chairman emeritus of the Richmond County Democratic Party in 2016.
Greenbaum helped revive the nearly defunct-party and served as chairman for 16 years. He will be dearly missed, current Chairman and Augusta Commissioner Jordan Johnson said.
“Lowell was a true champion of the people and dedicated his life to making his community and state a better place for all,” Johnson said. “I had the honor of learning from Lowell for nine years, and his guidance and wisdom will be greatly missed.”
In the 2016 interview, Greenbaum said his activism stemmed from his youth in New York, where his father was a union clothing cutter. When his father lost his job, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal changed everything, he said.
Greenbaum said he honed his political skills serving in the faculty senate at Columbia University, where he worked for 16 years prior to joining MCG.
“That’s where I have to attribute my feelings and my smarts, to the University Senate at Columbia University,” he said.
He would serve as county coordinator for Max Cleland’s 1996 successful senate campaign and got acquainted with then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi in John Barrow’s successful campaign for U.S. House.
In 2006, Greenbaum joined the board of directors of the Georgia Association of Democratic County Chairs, and in 2012 was named the board’s president. The board awarded Greenbaum its public service award in 2017.
Greenbaum was active till the end. He spoke to the Augusta Press in January about the passing of local party stalwart Terence Dicks, calling Dicks a “very, very good Democrat.”
Greenbaum is survived by Gloria, his wife of 73 years, and daughter Jessica Greenbaum, a poet in New York.
Funeral services for Greenbaum will be held at 2 p.m. Friday at Elliott Sons Funeral Home, 4255 Columbia Road.
