I was out of town for the last few days and just heard of Mike's passing.  I went to high school and played baseball with Mike.  I was fortunate to attend his church a year or so ago  and heard him preach.  I will miss him.  Dennis Cowart, Rustburg

I knew Mike and Kathy from my Sister married into the Brown family. I heard Mike preach and My biggest memory of him....he was holding his bible n the air and saying this is ths true word right here. He was a very down to earth person...He loved his family.  He will be so missed by everyone that came in contact with him..He has a new holy body now. He rejoicing in heaven . RIP brother Mike yu will be so missed....

My brother Mike was 6 and 1/2 years older than me.  When we were growing up we were inseparable.  I have so many favorite childhood memories of him.  One time when he was about 14 and I was about 8 we were playing pitch in the front yard of our house on Madison Street.  He was the pitcher and I was his catcher.  Well, he had already developed that lightening rod left arm and could hum the ball faster than I could catch it.  One of his pitches went wild and went right through a big picture window on the front of the house.  We were worried about what daddy would say when he got home.  Mike decide we would tell him that I wasn't a good enough catcher to be catching his pitching.  Daddy ended up not being too upset and laughed at us but said "you better never be pitching toward the house again guys".

It wasn't long before Mike was the talk of Rustburg about how he could pitch and the true talent he possessed.  He was my hero and I can remember walking through the stands at his games telling folks that he was my brother.  I was so proud of him growing up and got to see him pitch a game at city stadium for the White Sox minor league team at the time.  He was about to be drafted later and after much discussion with daddy he decide he would join the Marines if he got his draft notice.  I was with him the day he went to the mailbox and sure enough there was a letter in there from the draft board.  Almost everyone that got drafted during that time went to Viet Nam.  Mike got lucky and got assigned to Camp Lejeune in in North Carolina during his tour of duty.

After his tour he went back to baseball but soon suffered an injury that ended his pro career.  He became a meat cutter for Kroger for many years and then was called to the ministry later.  He founded the Peoples Baptist Church in Madison Heights over 40 years ago was there until he recently retired.

Mike was my friend, my lunch buddy, my mentor and my confidant.  God Bless him.

   Mike and I were teammates in 1966, when we won the American Legion state championship. One of my favorite memories of Mike was when we were horsing around, and I accidentally dislocated my shoulder. 
  Mike always felt responsible and years later, after I had left Lynchburg, Mike ran into my father and apologized profusely  for that incident. That tells me a lot about the type of man Mike turned out to be.     
   It was such a pleasure to see Mike and my other teammates 2 years ago for our 50th championship anniversary.  It was especially wonderful to see Mike preach a sermon before I left town.
   My memory of Mike is one of deep respect for the man he became, knowing that his soul is with the Lord today. I'm reminded of Matthew 10:39 where it says "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." God Bless you Mike.

My heart is so full....full of memories of Mike and Kathy.  Mike inherited me when he married my cousin, Kathy.  He was a gentle giant of a man and was so soft spoken, but he had a humorous side as well.   Numerous times Mike and Kathy invited me go on blind dates with various guys they knew.  That should have sent up red flags right there!   Following those dates we would  laugh at the comical outcomes of those events.  One I particularly remember was the weekend Mike, on leave with the Marines, brought home a fellow soldier.   Kathy wanted me to double date with them.  Of course, I agreed and as we proceeded on our double date, the guy said he needed a new pair of sneakers.  We stopped at a local store and he purchased said sneakers.  When he got back into the car and we proceeded on our date, he discovered he had bought shoes for the same foot!  We howled later as I commented I didn't know if I could trust them any longer with potential dates!

As many have commented Mike was quite the baseball pitcher.  I, too, graduated from Rustburg High School and my proudest moments were when my friends realized that Mike (the incredible baseball pitcher for the RHS team) was dating my cousin!  But Mike never boasted about his athletic abilities.  He simply played ball.  We were all saddened when Mike suffered an injury that ended his professional career, but God had other plans.  I still remember the beginnings of Peoples Baptist Church in that small little building with the old upright piano that Kathy invited me to play on occasion for the small gathering of people to sing.  How devoted they were to the start up of that church.

Mike was a loving man whom my sweet cousin adored.  Their love story was one of mutual respect and undying devotion.  I am so thankful I will see both of them again and for the opportunity to be a part of their lives.
I can only imagine what occurred when you drew your last breath this side of heaven, Mike.   

With love....
Gary and Cookie


I played baseball against Mike in high school, as he attended Rustburg and I was at Brookville.  He was a great pitcher and I greatly respected him as a competitor, but I didn't know him very well.  That changed the summer of '66 when we both were privileged to play on the State Championship American Legion  baseball team.  What a great teammate he was.  He was a pretty quiet guy as I recall, but so enjoyable to be around.  He was the heart of our pitching staff and a young man of strong character, even at that age.  
I had no contact with him after that summer, only hearing of him from time to time, until the 50 year reunion of that team in 2016.  We reminisced about great times playing baseball and also spoke about our mutual faith in Jesus Christ. I learned he pastored a church in Lynchburg  and joined a number of  our teammates  there that Sunday. it was a joy to hear him humbly relate his conversion and then bring a message from God's Word.
 I was sorry to hear of his illness and death, but it is a blessing to realize he is now with the Lord whom he has served these many years.  I will never forget Mike.   

Mike Brown was one of the best baseball players to come out of Brookville and the greater Lynchburg area. I grew up playing against Mike and always being defeated by him and his teammates.  Fortunately, I was provided the opportunity to play with him on the American Legion Team that won the State Championship in 1966.  Mike was one of the stars; I briefly appeared in one game during the entire run to the title.  Watching Mike on the field and in his interactions with his teammates and friends away from the diamond, I began to know and appreciate his as a person of integrity and kindness in addition to admiring his prowess on the field.  I was not able to attend the reunion a few summers ago and regret missing the occasion.  I heard that Mike invited everyone to attend a Sunday morning service.  I would have loved to have heard that sermon.

 Steve Bryant has kept in touch with me and he called this morning with news of Mike's passing.  I wanted to reach out to his family right away to express my condolences and share my limited but valued experiences with him.  As long I live, Mike Brown will remain a legend in my memory as both a player with great talent and a young man with even greater character.  He was a fierce competitor and a caring teammate.  He will be missed.

 All best wishes, Jimmy Connor.

Mike was the star pitcher of our American Legion Post 16 team when I joined as a rookie and he aged out after we won the state championship in 1966.  I looked up to him both as a pitcher and as a person, competitive yet kind, always a good sport, win or lose.  It was an honor to attend a service where he preached two years ago when the team celebrated its 50th anniversary of the state championship, and the entire weekend was made special with his presence.  Mike will be missed, but his memory will live on.

Mike and Kathy have been friends since our sons Josh and Tim became friends in elementary school. Kathy and I shared many fun days when we worked together at liberty University. Mike was always supportive of our craziness. I remember both of them as faithful servants of our Lord Jesus Christ. They now have happiness together serving our saviour in paradise. Praying for Josh and family. Love 
Sue and Harold Bess. 

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Michael is survived by his sons Jon Brown (Erin) of Glen Allen and Josh Brown (Dawn Peters) of Monroe; two siblings, Jeff Brown (Kat) of Pensacola, FL and Pat Coleman of Concord; four grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.

OBITUARY

Michael Wayne Brown

March 13, 1948 – November 7, 2018

Whitten Monelison Chapel

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