David Lowrey, division chief/fire marshal for Boulder, Colo. Fire-Rescue is the American Fire Sprinkler Association’s (AFSA) 2024 Fire Sprinkler Advocate of the Year. Lowrey will be presented with AFSA’s Fire Sprinkler Advocate of the Year Award during the general session at AFSA43: Convention, Exhibition & Apprentice Competition on Friday, September 20, at the Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center in Denver.

Lowrey isn’t interested in slowing down as he nears a typical retirement age after 30 years in the fire service. He proactively educates his constituents on the life- and property-saving benefits of residential sprinklers and serves within state and national organizations to aid in that effort. Noting his work on many levels to support his goal of residential sprinkler acceptance, AFSA is proud to honor Lowrey as its Fire Sprinkler Advocate of the Year.

Lowrey earned his Bachelor of Science in FPSE Technology from Oklahoma State University (OSU). When he joined the City of Boulder Fire Department as an FPE, he gained extensive experience in plan review, inspecting, and acceptance testing of fire protection systems. Lowrey was then promoted to division chief/fire marshal, overseeing the community risk reduction division, including code enforcement, building construction, life safety education, and fire investigations. He was instrumental in the passage of a residential sprinkler ordinance in Boulder in 2018.

Lowrey is a member of the Fire Marshals Association of Colorado (FMAC), Colorado Fire Sprinkler Coalition, National Association of Fire Investigators (NAFI), and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). He is a member of several NFPA technical committees and the UL STP 1389 committee and serves as an NFPA instructor.

“I could not be more pleased to have our industry bestow this honor on Chief Lowrey,” comments AFSA President Bob Caputo, CFPS. “I have had the privilege of knowing and working with him on numerous NFPA standards committees and task groups where his experience and his advocacy for fire and life safety leads the conversation as well as the results.”

“David has been an advocate for fire sprinklers for many years," states Terry Victor, director of risk control services, Risk Suppression Partners LLC, who nominated Lowrey for this award. "Serving on several NFPA technical committees, including the NFPA 13 Correlating Committee and the SSI and RES technical committees, has given him the experience and understanding of the necessity and value of sprinkler systems.”

Learn more and register to attend AFSA43 at firesprinkler.swoogo.com/AFSA43live/.