Roxana Teresa Bowles was born on September 9, 1949 and died surrounded by her loved ones on February 18, 2022. Roxana was born in Santa Cruz Bolivia, the daughter of Mary Chavez and J. Jorge Bowles. She is preceded in death by her parents and brothers, Juan Bowles, Arturo Bowles and Erwin Bowles. She leaves behind sisters, Maria Elena Rowe of Hooks, TX and Lorena Bowles de Rojas and Claudia Bowles Olhagaray of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
Roxana was the beloved mother to Laura Murphy of Frisco, TX and Amy Basye of Carrollton, TX. She considered her son-in-law, Jack Murphy, a son of her own and was a proud grandmother of Laura and Jack’s three children, Alyssa Murphy, Kathryn Murphy and Jack Murphy of Frisco, TX.
A former beauty queen, Roxana represented her country as Miss Bolivia in the 1968 Miss Universe Pageant held in Miami, FL that year. Shortly after the pageant, Roxana joined her sister, Maria, in Hooks, Texas where they were sponsored as Rotary Club foreign exchange students. She attended Texarkana College, East Texas State University and later married and had two daughters who were raised in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. She became a naturalized United States citizen in 1978.
Roxana pursued a Master’s in Linguistics at Texas Women’s University in Denton, TX and served as a Teacher’s Assistant teaching students Spanish.
She loved her family and friends dearly, often finding reasons to host a party or dinner. She was an active member of the Bolivian Association of Dallas for many years, and proud to represent her country, returning home over the years when she was able.
In 2012, Roxana moved to Baybrooke Village Care and Rehab Center in McKinney, TX where she resided for almost 10 years.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, February 25th at 10:00am at Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church in Allen, Texas.
A Graveside Service and burial will take place on Saturday, February 26th at 2pm at Myrtle Springs Cemetery in Hooks, TX.