Sylvia B. Bowe, age 98, of Brookings, died Wednesday, March 11, 2009, at the Brookings Hospital. Interment at the Sisseton Cemetery will be at a later date.

Sylvia B. Bowe was born August 1, 1910, at Sisseton, South Dakota, to Knute and Katherine M. (Dahle) Bowe. She was the only child of Katherine and Knute Bowe. She attended school in Sisseton and graduated from Sisseton High School. Following graduation Sylvia assisted her father in the Bowe's Photography Studio in Sisseton. Upon her father's death, she and her mother moved to Aberdeen, South Dakota, where Sylvia was employed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. In 1966 Sylvia was transferred to Albuquerque, New Mexico, and she remained with the Bureau of Indian Affairs until her retirement.

Sylvia was baptized in the Lutheran Church in Sisseton, and upon moving to Albuquerque she became a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church of Albuquerque. She was active in the sewing group at St. Paul's. Sylvia also was active in community service and delivered Meals on Wheels until 1997. After experiencing medical problems she returned to South Dakota and made her home at the United Retirement Center in Brookings. Sylvia had a contagious smile, terrific sense of humor and when she laughed she made everyone laugh with her. Although she had very few relatives she was surrounded by many friends that she considered her family. She was preceded in death by her parents. Sylvia returned to Brookings to be close to her friend Ella Lane