Donald Everett Brown

Donald Everett Brown passed away peacefully at his adult family home on July 28, 2023. He was born on February 27, 1930 to Isabel Mohr and Floyd Brown in Detroit, MI where he grew up with brothers William and Robert and sister Isabel. He served for a brief time as an ambulance driver in the United States Air Force but soon returned to Detroit where he became a skilled union carpenter. He met and married his true love, Frances Brown, in 1964 in Detroit. Gram and Gramps, as they were fondly called by their family, followed Gram’s son Gary Clark and his wife Sandra along with their three children to Olympia in 1976. They both truly loved living in the Pacific Northwest. Together they enjoyed gardening, raising a few dachshunds over the years, spending time with their grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. They were also dedicated WWE fans and never missed a fight night.

Gramps’ skills as a carpenter were evident in his love of building model railroads and birdhouses. You could often find him tinkering with a project in his garage while sipping a cold Sam Adams. He loved watching old Western movies and solving daily crossword puzzles and was able to answer many of the questions on Jeopardy even into his 90s.

He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, our Gram, along with his parents and brother William and sister Isabel, and his adored great-grandson Harley (Clark). He is survived by his brother Robert Brown of Detroit, along with many friends and relatives in both the Detroit and Olympia area. He is survived by his granddaughter Cheri (Davidson) and her husband Jeff of Tumwater, granddaughter Melisa (Cortez) and husband Odie of Shelton, grandson Kevin (Clark) of Olympia, great-granddaughter Alison (Bessee) and her husband Cole of Tacoma, great-granddaughter McKenzie (Clark) of Lacey, great-great granddaughter Jaelyn (Clark) of Lacey, great-grandson Kyle (Davidson) and wife Chelsie of Spokane, and great-great grandson Cameron (Bessee) of Tacoma.

The family would like to thank each of the caregivers at 1st Seniors Hope Adult Family Home for their loving care of our dear Gramps during the years he resided there. We appreciate you!

Gramps has at last been laid to rest with Gram, and things are as they should be. The family will be privately paying their respects at their shared gravesite at the Mills and Mills Memorial Park located on Trosper Road in Tumwater.

Gramps, we will miss you and love you forever. Now go give Gram and Harley a kiss and watch some Geo-Party, as you loved to say!