The Life and Times of Cameron Layne Cowan
Cameron Cowan, 27, of Highmore, died March 20, 2005, at her residence. A funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, March 28, at the Hyde County Memorial Auditorium in Highmore with the Rev. John Short officiating. Burial will be at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery, under the direction of Luze Funeral Home of Highmore. Visitation will be 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 27, at Luze Funeral Home. A prayer service will be held at 7 p.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Highmore.

Cameron Layne Cowan was born on Nov. 17, 1977, to Michael S. and Cheryl M. (Hahn) Cowan. Until the age of two, she enjoyed being the only child in her large extended family and then the real fun began. On Jan. 30, 1980, she became the big sister to Calico Jayne Cowan. In early 1981, the family moved from just outside Highmore to nine miles south of Holabird, just in time for childhood adventures. Cam and Calico were inseparable. Playing with the family dog, Thomas; tormenting every baby calf born; and pretty much being raised by mother cats was their life on Chapelle Creek. School soon came into the picture and Cam found her niche as a student. She attended Pratt School from kindergarten through third grade and entered fourth grade in Highmore. During her grade school and high school days, her activities were many, as she thrived among crowds. There was no more fun than cattle shows, school plays or time spent with her large posse of friends and family. She attended college at the University of South Dakota. She declared many times that being a lifetime student might have been an option for her. While attending USD, she was a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, lived in their sorority house and spent days that she always cherished. In April 2000, just before her graduation from USD with her degree in psychology, the script for Cam's life was rewritten. She was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. The treatments were grueling and the real Cam Cowan stepped up. The next five years were spent in treatment, out of treatment and chasing life full speed. If you could go on a cruise, calve heifers, teach students at the Eagle Center, work horse sales, travel to the mountains or take your favorite kids camping while having cancer, that was Cam's agenda. Everyone was important enough to have a piece of her time. Survivors include her parents, Mike and Cheryl Cowan; her sister, Calico Jayne Cowan; her maternal grandmother, Elinor White; her goddaughter, Emma Jean Ohm; her godson, Patrick Andrew Aasby; and her border collie dog, Jake. And several friends. She was preceded in death by her Grandpa Art Cowan, Grandma Mary Cowan, Grandpa Bud Hahn, Grandpa Jake White, Uncle Pat and Aunt Elayne Cowan, Doug Cowan and Kimberly Cowan Churchill, as well as her first border collie dog, Thomas.