Loweta was the middle child of ten born to parents James Weaver and Fannie Mae (McKee) Cross. Her father was a Pentecostal minister, her mother part Choctaw, and together they raised nine children on the southwestern prairie in Texas and Oklahoma.
It was on this prairie at an early age, that Loweta learned to love western culture and lifestyle, the ranching and farming, the people and the horses; as well as the close family ties and strong traditional values that were taught in her loving home. Art was always her passion, and music was an integral part of her life.
Her father taught her to sing and read music; while her mother saved every piece of scrap paper that had a clean side for Loweta to use for drawing. She always loved to draw and when paper wasn't available she and her sister used the prairie sand, with sticks for paintbrushes, to illustrate her stories as she told them under the shade trees during the hot summer days.
It was also on this western prairie in Quanah, Texas that she met her husband Cecil at a church function where his mother introduced them. They had a quick courtship, were married in 1946, and moved to Weatherford where both attended college at Southwestern State University. There, Loweta took courses in art and history and her calling to preserve and portray the stories of the land and its people began to blossom. During the years she was attending college and Cecil was coaching, their two sons Ron and Cap were born; and Loweta devoted her time to them. The family moved to Altus in 1959, where Cecil continued his career in education and Loweta felt that she had finally come home. She practiced to become a licensed cosmetologist and opened her own beauty shop. She also studied art and expanded her expertise in oils, acrylics, watercolor, and pastels. She and Cecil truly loved this area and shared their quest to write the history and tell the stories of the people.
As interest grew to develop a local museum, the Museum of the Western Prairie was built and its collections began to grow; Loweta brought her skills in business and management, her vast talent in art and her knowledge of the history and culture of this area into the museum as its first curator. With the first box of family artifacts she examined, Loweta knew that this museum had to be more than a collection of "things"; it had to tell the story of these things and the people who brought them here; it had to build a connection between the people then and the people now and the kinship that we all share today.
During her 24 years as curator, Loweta and her local board brought accolades and honors to the Museum of the Western Prairie. She developed partnerships within the community to present programs and expand collections. She worked tirelessly to develop grant proposals to make more funding and resources available locally. She was honored for her efforts at the state and national level. Locally, she was honored in 2002 as the Altus Times "Woman of the Year".
In 1994, Loweta retired and began a full time painting career. Her quest in retirement was to become an accomplished and noted artist recognized by her peers at juried art shows. She has achieved this quest with many "Best of Show" awards and other honors.
The Western Trail Historical Society has selected Loweta Chesser as its honoree for Women's History Month 2004. The public is invited to attend her program, art exhibition, and reception at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 14 at at the Museum of the Western Prairie.
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