VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) –  On October 25, 2024, will be one year since Valley City resident Lowell Busching died, but his contributions toward making his beloved city and the surrounding area better continue to this day.

Busching moved to Valley City as a child with his parents from Breckinridge, Minnesota, in the 1940s. He graduated from Valley City High School in 1954, then took a 2-year course at Dakota Business College in Fargo. From there he joined the United States Air Force, where he trained in radar maintenance and electronic technology until his discharge in 1960.

This led to a job at General Electric as an electronic technician in the Bahamas. After some time spent in Germany, Busching took a job with Bentex Field Engineering, and ended up working with the Apollo Space Program as part of the simulation and measuring team. He was part of the team at the Goddard Space Center in Antiqua working with audio communications
to assure the astronauts’ safety during the first moon landing. There was also time spent at Cape Kennedy, Texas, Bermuda, Ascension and Guam.

Busching returned to school to study computer programming. He went on to work with Goldstone on the Pioneer Spacecraft Program, then on to the Burroughs Computer Company, Philco-Ford, and then he spent the last 17 years of his career working at Hughes Aircraft in southern California.

Through all his work travels and storied career, Busching maintained connections with his hometown of Valley City, returning to spend his summers here after 1990. After his retirement, he moved back permanently in 1997 and became a member of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, the local AmVets, and the Valley City Kiwanis and Eagles Club. At one point, discouraged by the conditions he saw, Busching took to the streets to touch up rusted lamp posts and pull weeds. In 2008-09, he took it upon himself to dig out and repaint the rocks of the ‘Pioneers’ letters and beautify the Amphitheater located at Pioneers Park, bringing it back to life after it had been declared a liability. But one of his favorite places to spend time was at the Barnes County Museum where he volunteered many hours. His deep, gravelly and loud voice could be heard throughout the museum’s levels, but his bark was far worse than his bite could ever be. He was generous with his time and whatever capabilities he could offer to the museum. And that generosity continued with his final bequest to give his life insurance policy and his house to the Barnes County Historical Society which will help the Society improve and continue to serve the community for years to come. It is a lasting legacy of Lowell Busching who loved Valley City and showed it in every possible way.