Virginia Lee (Jurgens) Brown

Virginia Lee Brown passed away peacefully on April 3, 2026, just three hours shy of her 93rd birthday.
She shared her birthday with her younger sister, Rosemary, who passed in 1983, and it brings comfort to think they are once again celebrating together.
Born on April 4, 1933, to Jurgen C. Jurgens and Ruth E. Edwards, Virginia—known to all as Ginny—grew up in San Leandro, California. She graduated from St. Elizabeth High School, then from Holy Names College in Oakland, where she formed lifelong friendships that remained an important part of her life. During these years, Ginny was an avid tennis player, competing in both singles and doubles and playing throughout the Bay Area. She was part of two close-knit circles of girl friends—one from high school and one from college—and in later years was among the last remaining, carrying a lifetime of shared memories and enduring connection.
She met her future husband, Norman Jack Brown Jr., through her college classmate Janis, Norman’s sister, and on June 23, 1956, they were married. Together they built a life centered on family.
Following college, Ginny worked for the Alameda County Assessor’s Office before choosing to devote herself to raising her family. Once her children were older, she returned to the workforce as a medical transcriptionist, at Valley Memorial Hospital, in Livermore, a role she held with dedication and care for over 30 years until her retirement, where she also formed another circle of lasting friendships.
In 1958, Ginny and Norman moved from Cal student housing to Livermore with their first two children. In March 1960, they moved into the new home they had purchased—a home Ginny would live in for the rest of her life. For 66 years, that house was not just where she lived, but where she created a home filled with family, tradition, and care.
Ginny had a gift for making a house feel like home. She loved to sew, knit, and crochet, and her hands created countless pieces that will continue to warm her family for years to come. She made sure that each member of her family—and extended family—had a hand-knit Christmas stocking, as well as baby booties, a quiet but lasting expression of her care and thoughtfulness. Visitors were often welcomed with a full cookie jar and were sent home with Norman and Ginny’s famous homemade jams. Those in need of a place to stay found her door open for weeks, months, or even years.
She also found great joy in gardening, especially tending to her beloved roses, and was rarely without her camera, capturing the beauty of her family and her garden. She passed on her love of sewing, crocheting, cooking, and gardening to her children—a lasting legacy carried forward in their own homes and lives.
Ginny was a voracious reader and true bibliophile, with a deep love of words and stories that stayed with her throughout her life. Together with Norman, she found great enjoyment in the arts and in literature. They were longtime season ticket holders to the opera in both San Francisco and San Jose and loved attending the symphony, musical theatre and museums. She delighted in introducing others to the joy of books and music. Ginny also loved to explore, from local home tours to world travels with Norman, and she remained an adventurous traveler even after his passing.
She was a devoted member of the Young Ladies’ Institute (Y.L.I. Livermore #44) at St. Michael’s Parish since 1958 and was a founding member of St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Livermore.
To her many nieces and nephews, she was known simply and lovingly as Auntie Ginny, and to their children she became a cherished and steady presence—a surrogate grandmother whose warmth and care extended far beyond her immediate family. She and Norman were known for always showing up—for birthdays, celebrations, sporting events and the important moments in the lives of those they loved. She was also known for faithfully sending birthday and special occasion cards to everyone in her orbit—never missing a date. It was often said, with a smile, that she must have owned stock in Hallmark.
Those who knew Virginia will also remember something simple and unmistakable—the familiar scent of Jergens lotion, a small and comforting signature she carried with her, and one she always felt, with a smile, ought to have been spelled the same as her maiden name. She had a fondness for the color red, a detail those who knew her well will instantly recognize.
She is survived by her children: Kevin Brown and his wife, Lorri Wilson; Linda and her husband, Scott Trudeau; Susan and her husband, Paul Geisler; and Diane Brown.
Virginia was preceded in death by her husband, Norman; her children, Stephen and Carol Brown; her sisters, Christine Mulhern and Rosemary Sontag; and her great-granddaughter, Ophelia Utreras.
She leaves behind a large and loving legacy through her grandchildren—Kelly Campbell, Robert Tidmarsh Jr., Angela Cormier, Kendall Hernandez, Cameron Hoffman-Brown, Gabriela Utreras, Cody Elizalde, Andrayla Armstead, Jack Trudeau, Nora Peckham, and Nicholas Peckham—as well as nineteen great-grandchildren who will carry her memory forward.
A service to celebrate Virginia’s life will be held on Friday, April 24, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at Callaghan Mortuary, 3833 East Avenue, Livermore, California. A graveside service will follow at 12:30 p.m. at St. Michael’s Cemetery, 3885 East Avenue, Livermore. An open house will follow at Virginia’s home.
Donations in Virginia’s memory may be made to San Francisco Opera or the San Jose Opera.
Virginia’s life was defined by her quiet strength, her deep devotion to family, and the countless ways she showed her love through presence, care, and the work of her hands. She will be deeply missed and forever remembered by all who knew and loved her.