NOW SELLING THE ARCADIAN a r c a d i a n P H X . c o m STARTING IN THE $600s 602-975-5016 4220 N. 32nd St. Phoenix 85018 18 SEPTEMBER 2024 N ate Lowrie is a modern-day voyager and adventurous explorer in search of the yet-to-be- discovered next horizon. His advice to others – wisdom acquired from his life experiences – is to “have the courage to be yourself.” He admits that he learned that the hard way. “I thought I was a leader, a savvy businessman right out of college, but looking back, I didn’t know much,” the fourth-generation Arizonan recalls. “I tried to white-knuckle everything I did to succeed.” Lowrie had a tumultuous upbringing with a courageous adopted mom who filled in for an absentee biological mother. He believes those early challenges instilled a sense of fortitude and resilience. “My father and grandfather were both builders throughout Arizona, and my earliest memories of life were on my dad’s job sites,” Lowrie said. “Little did I know my childhood experience would come full circle.” Today, Lowrie is CEO and part of an investor group that owns Bjerk Builders, a longstanding construction firm he joined earlier this year. Bjerk performs various types of commercial construction but specializes in tenant improvements. Prior to acquiring Bjerk, Nate was CEO of Valleywise Health Foundation, where he was a long-time board member before leading the fundraising organization that supports the county hospital. While there, he and his staff set many fundraising records. Starting and growing businesses is nothing new for Lowrie, as he has had several since graduating from ASU’s business school magna cum laude in 2001. Afterward, he opened the first Zoe’s Kitchen in the Valley, adding two more stores before selling the popular chain in 2007. His tendency toward perfectionism, whether in business or community service, almost had him burning out. “At one point, I was trying to do everything and control it all. It was an illusion of leadership and achievement, that was all,” he said. That realization caused him to surrender his will to a higher power, which he said turned his life around. When Lowrie isn’t working, he pursues an unbridled passion for cycling. “I biked a lot while in college, which tended to crowd out the shenanigans you could choose to do,” he said. “Ultimately, I fell in love with cycling and found it was an ideal time to converse with God.” He says there are parallels between long-distance biking and running a business. “You sometimes talk to yourself and the Lord, asking in earnest, ‘Am I going to make it today?’” Lowrie said. “Many of the trials that I’ve faced, personally and professionally, have helped strengthen my faith, character and even my sense of service to others.” Nate has two grown children – a daughter, Dillan, and a son, Austin – and lives with his long-time partner, Harmony Fulton. “Their love strengthens my purpose and love. I realized recently that we should do more of what excites us, not worry about whether it will work out or what others may think, and instead focus on our highest purpose,” he said. Lowrie may have acquired such a philosophy from his kids’ grandmother: “With a broad smile, she told us, ‘Have fun and kick some butt,’” he remembers. Lowrie has found a way to accomplish both. Nate Lowrie