Directors

Originally from Connecticut, Lowell’s family moved to Venice, Italy when she was three years old. Her father was a concert pianist and composer, a Fulbright Scholar with a master’s degree in The Art of French Interior Design from the Sorbonne.

Lowell’s mother was a musicologist and lyrical soprano. Born in Oxford, England, she studied in Paris, Munich and Vienna and returned to America in 1939 when England declared war against Germany. She studied at the Art Students League, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and continued her voice studies at the Westminster Choir College. She was also a whimsical cartoonist and a gifted and accomplished artist whose work was exhibited at Venice’s Biennale Art Expos in the early to mid 60s and in galleries in New York and Southampton.

When the family returned to the States, Lowell continued her education at Marymount, NY and later transferred to Sacred Heart in Menlo Park, CA. She returned to New York and enrolled at Katharine Gibbs School and received a specialized degree in business administration while taking night classes in Communications and Media at Hunter College

In 1972 Lowell joined the staff of Mademoiselle Magazine and worked there for 17 ½ years. After she started at MLLE, she took elective courses in fashion history, theory, and culture at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology and at Parson’s School of Design. Her career started as assistant to the Executive Editor. She was later promoted to the position of Shopping Editor and Merchandising Editor and later became Merchandising and Marketing Director straddling the ‘fence’ between the Editorial and the Business divisions of the magazine.

In December 1989 Lowell resigned from MLLE to open her own marketing and sales promotion consultancy and on January 1, 1990, Lowell Amey and Associates was born. She developed and presented in-store promotions, added-value programs and served as her clients’ national representative and spokesperson.
Her clients included Vogue, Self, Bazaar, New Woman, Brides’ Magazine, and Sassy, along with May Company and Federated Department Stores including Maas Brothers, Dillard’s, Macy’s, and Burdines.

In March 1991, Lowell was introduced to Jay Van Vechten on a blind date, and it was love at first sight. Not only was it a perfect, once-in-a-lifetime love connection, but as fate would have it, it was a successful business merger as well, six months later they were married on Young Island in the Grenadines. In the summer of 1993, they were blessed with the arrival of their son Nicholas and by 1995 Lowell closed ‘shop’, Jay relocated his PR firm and they moved to Boca Raton, FL.

No stranger to volunteering, Lowell started as a Candy Striper for Southampton Hospital. While attending school in Menlo Park, CA, she volunteered at Stanford University’s program for children with developmental issues. She volunteered for the Southampton Fresh Air Home (a NFP center offering year-round recreational and educational programs for children and young adults with physical disabilities); Lenox Hill Hospital fundraisers and Kips Bay Boys Club’s annual Decorator’s Show House.

After moving to Boca Raton, Lowell served on the committees for the Boca Raton Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters; Children’s Place at Home Safe and the Boca Pops. She and her late husband Jay Co-Chaired Unicorn Children’s Foundation’s annual ball as well as the Boca Raton Historical Society’s Gala and chose to pay tribute to the vital role that Boca Raton played during WWII.

Jay served and later chaired the City of Boca Raton’s Board for People with Disabilities. During his tenure, he persuaded the city to add more curb cuts, more disability parking spaces and to invest in mobility mats to make Boca’s Beaches accessible to people with disabilities. Each year, they hosted an annual picnic in Spanish River Park for people with disabilities who lived in group homes. After attending a couple of events, he proposed several changes and in 2009 it was re-named the Boating and Beach Bash for People with Disabilities. The invitation was extended to include people with all disabilities–both seen and unseen– along with their families and caregivers. He broadened the event’s offerings by including free boat rides on the intracoastal; a live concert; a Kids’ Fun Zone; a BBQ lunch including snacks and beverages; an Artists’ Corner and exhibitors who showcased their goods and services specifically aimed to target the needs of people with disabilities.

By 2012 the event drew such large crowds that the city asked Jay and Lowell to take it over because it outgrew their city’s ability to sponsor the event. Jay and Lowell were happy to accept the challenge and with the help of a dedicated founding committee, they raised enough money to host the 2012 Bash.

By 2014, the American Disabilities Foundation was formed to serve as the 501(C)3, not-for-profit charity specifically created to host the annual Boating and Beach Bash and to participate in additional events that serve the differently abled members in our community.

Over the years it has become a hallmark event for the city of Boca Raton and is among the Largest, FREE, fun festivals in the country that celebrates inclusion, diversity, and acceptance.