Estill ‘John’ Bowling, 77

Estill “John” Bowling passed away with loved ones at his side in Bowling Green, Kentucky on December 28, 2020 after a courageous battle against COVID-19. 

After graduating high school where #25 was a star basketball player, he received a basketball scholarship to a junior college in Kentucky, but later left school to join the Air Force during which time he eventually worked with NASA and the space program. After military service, Estill became a nationally recognized leader in sales and marketing while leading a team of over 100. He was also a sought-after motivational speaker often called upon to give inspirational talks and retell his “rags to riches” story of growing up poor as the son of a sharecropper, never taking no for answer, and working hard. He always said that despite the poverty in which he grew up, he was surrounded by loving parents and close-knit siblings, something he would not have changed for any amount of money. Even though encountering numerous challenges later in life, he remained positive and always tried to highlight the good in people and life in general.