Richard (Rick) Edward McDowell

Richard (Rick) Edward McDowell

Early Life and Military Service

Rick, the middle child of Alice and Rich, was born on December 25, 1968. He went on to marry Pamela (Cochran) McDowell in 1991 while serving in the Marine Corps where he specialized in avionics. Rick and Pam’s wedding can be seen (Pictured Below). The couple would later have one son, Caleb, on May 22, 1998

Fun Fact: Rick was a certified scuba diver at the age of 15 and initially planned on becoming a marine biologist. 

Postal Career and Karate School

Rick worked as a carrier for the United States Postal Service in Defiance Ohio before moving his family to South Carolina for advancement opportunity. During his time in Defiance, he also owned and operated Defiance Christian Martial Arts with his wife Pam. After their move to SC, he worked in Marion County under Tommy Pelham whom he would operate as his 204B until he was accepted for a position as Postmaster in Bennettsville SC where he remained until retirement in October 2022.

Civil Air Patrol and Private Piloting

Rick received his pilot’s license prior to moving to South Carolina and maintained a membership with the
Marion County civil air patrol chapter until he moved to Bennettsville. Rick owned and maintained several airplanes during his time as a pilot, the first being a kit plane that he owned and worked on in Ohio, he later sold that plane and bought a Grumman lynx (Pictured Right), and later a Grumman Traveler. Rick decided not to continue his piloting career after a close call with a bird strike above Cheraw, SC, after

which, he repaired and sold his Grumman Traveler (Tail Number N1321R). His plane can be seen in Hartsville, SC (Pictured Right).

Post Retirement

After Retirement, Rick and his wife Pam, remained in Bennettsville, acquiring the land that they call “ODT Acres”, a reference to Peggy Cochran who was known for the phrase “One Day at a Time” which they abbreviated to “ODT”.

 

Rick and his wife spent much of their retirement fishing, hunting, and building structures on their property. The couple can be seen seated on the foundation of their first small cabin at ODT Acres which was constructed almost exclusively with native lumber that they milled on their sawmill. (Pictured Right).

Ricks Cars

 

Being that both his father and father in-law both worked at General Motors, Rick gravitated to Chevrolet and Pontiac vehicles. Below is a notable, however not fully inclusive, list of some of the cars he’s owned over the years.

 

1975 Camaro

            Rick initially had a 1975 Camaro as his first car. 1975 Camaro can be seen (Pictured Right)

 

 

1968 Firebird

            Rick traded his 75 Camaro back to his parents in exchange for their 68 Firebird. He painted this car several times until he finally painted it blue before selling it.

Fun Fact: Rick credits his hatred of the blue paint job for why he sold this car, and why he refuses to paint any car blue.

 

1986 Firebird

            Rick later purchased a base model 86 Firebird which he had until a trip to Florida where he got into a car accident and totaled it.

Fun Fact: The trip to Florida was a 20-hour drive, the flight back only took 8 hours.

 

 

Fiero Ferrari Kit Car

            While on base in California, Rick and Pam worked on a Ferrari Kit car. The couple documented their experience in a VHS which they would later rediscover when going through John and Peg’s things.

 

 

 

V8 swapped Fiero

            The initial plan with this was to do a Lamborghini kit car after the swap; however, their plans changed after the swap.

 

 

 

 

1996 Chevrolet K1500 Z71

            Rick purchased this truck around the time that his son was born, and used it to plow snow in Defiance, Ohio. He kept it until around the time he retired, after which he sold it due to rust in the cab from road salt.