The suicide of the owner of Lowen’s Pharmacy, who was caught up in a steroids scandal was reported yesterday. “I’ve shopped at Lowen’s many times over the years. This business has long roots in the neighborhood – Kenny was telling me how he remembers their old location, and the real life Mr. Lowen, pharmacist ,who ran it, near 68th and Third, right next to Three Jolly Pigeons. When the neighborhood’s other small pharmacies –including Alpine Pharmacy and Physicians & Surgeon’s, both on Fourth Avenue, quietly expired, Lowen’s actually expanded. It moved to 69th Street and took over I think three stores. This gave it some degree of size, so that it actually prospered while competing against Rite Aid and the ohter mega-chains that invaded Bay Ridge and all of America. Now a suicide. I took some comfort in knowing that it didn’t happen in the store…Lowen’s Pharmacy has been a beloved part of the neighborhood for 30-40 years or more.”–Bay Ridge Blog, Photo, Soup Flowers/flickr