Sisterhood Spotlight - Dr. Debra Sowell ('78)

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Tell us a little about yourself.
I was born in Bowling Green, and we lived here until I was 3 and we moved to Horse Cave. My dad was finishing college at Western. He was the first person in his family ever to attend college. He grew up on a tobacco farm and ended up in education. My mom was a secretary at the time after graduating from the Bowling Green Business University (BU). We returned to Bowling Green when I entered third grade, and I remained in Bowling Green until 1978 when I married my husband, Ron Sowell (’77), three weeks after I graduated from WKU with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. In August 1978, I started medical school at the University of Kentucky. I graduated in 1982 and remained at UK for my pediatric residency. I joined Graves Gilbert Clinic, where I have remained for 35 years in the practice of full-time pediatrics until recently. I am now on an ultra-part-time schedule waiting for my husband to retire in March 2021. My daughter, Kellie Sowell Crawford, was born while I was a fourth-year medical student. She is a CPA and the firm administrator/CFO at Bell, Orr, Ayers and Moore, PSC. My son, Bradley Sowell, was born when I was a senior resident, and he went to law school but is currently working in addiction/recovery treatment. I am the proud “GG” to seven grandchildren—six boys and one “diva princess” girl.

What does the WKU Sisterhood mean to you?
The Sisterhood is a unique opportunity to showcase women donors coming together to promote projects at our alma mater. We are a very diverse group and that makes it that much more interesting.

How long have you been a member of the WKU Sisterhood?
I have been a member since 2014.

How did you hear about the WKU Sisterhood?
Julie Ransdell called me about joining. Her youngest son and my son were in the same high school class. My husband has also served on many boards at WKU, but I have had limited time in the past to really participate in much.

What is your favorite part of being a member of the Sisterhood?
Once again, I think it is the diversity of having recent graduates, ladies in their 70s, those who never worked, those who work full time, those who are retired, and those who are teachers and/or administrators with the University. 

What you would like to see in the future for the WKU Sisterhood?
I would love to see our numbers increase back to where they have been in the past. With the COVID crisis, along with everything else, we had some members who decided to cut back on giving to charitable organizations, and unfortunately their Sisterhood dues were part of that. I would also like to see the Sisterhood grow from primarily women from Bowling Green, Glasgow and Louisville to something with more regional involvement. Personally, I would like to see many of my colleagues who have benefited from the very strong pre-professional programs at WKU take more interest in the program.