Obituaries

Julia LoweHechinger Employee

Julia Lowe, 81, a former receiving manager for Hechinger stores, died Aug. 16 at her home in Haines City, Fla., of complications from a stroke, heart disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Mrs. Lowe lived in Springfield for 18 years, from 1963 to 1981. She was active in square dancing and clogging groups while in the area. She also enjoyed RVing, dancing and watching crime shows on television.

She was born in Colonie, N.Y., and grew up in Watervliet, N.Y. She left Northern Virginia for New Mexico and then moved to Florida in 1991.

Survivors include her husband of 58 years, Frank J. Lowe of Ridge; four children, Michael Lowe of Sandy, Ore., David Lowe of Ridge, Sandra Buxton of Burke and Susan Faul of Lexington Park; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

-- Patricia Sullivan

Charles J. PetersFAA Legal Officer

Charles James Peters, 90, who retired in 1973 as the Federal Aviation Administration's associate general counsel for litigation, died of cardiac arrest Aug. 12 at his home in Alexandria.

Mr. Peters spent his career as a legal officer for the FAA and its predecessor agencies. In retirement, he spent a decade as associate Washington counsel of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and was of counsel to the law firm of John S. Yodice.

In 1970, as the FAA's acting general counsel, he played a major role in a labor dispute between the agency and the relatively new Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization.

After more than 2,000 controllers staged a three-week "sick-out," Mr. Peters strongly challenged the legality of the strike. The result was a court-ordered injunction against slowdowns, sick-outs, strikes and similar actions.

The union largely ignored the ruling, culminating in a 1981 strike in which more than 12,000 controllers walked off the job. The Reagan administration crushed the strike.