Joseph Henry Brown Jr., the son of the late Joseph Henry Brown Sr. and Thelma Brown, was born on March 11, 1930 in Baltimore, Maryland. He departed this life on January 8, 2000.
A graduate of Douglass High School, class of 1948, he attended Morgan State College and then graduated from the American Academy of Mortuary Science, New York, class of 1954. After serving a two-year tour of active duty with the United States Army during the Korean Conflict, he was honorably discharged as a sergeant.
He was a lifelong member and trustee of the church that he loved dearly, Ebenezer A.M.E. He was also Past President of the Maryland State Funeral Directors and Morticians Association, a member of Epsilon Nu Delta Fraternity – Alpha Beta Chapter, the National Funeral Directors Association, and the Elks Spirit of the Chesapeake Lodge No. 1107.
“The Passing of the Undertakers’ Undertaker”
There are many in the profession that have been inspired by his works of art and science. His expertise and dedication to preservation, restoration and presentation of the human form in repose is known well by both the families served and his peers. He was an embalmer by trade. This is what was of utmost importance to him. This is what should be most important to us all in this profession. It is at the essence of what we do. It was what he did with the skill and finesse that he developed from decades of experience.
“And the People’s People”
His genuine love of people made him who and what he was. It made him well known and loved by many, mostly because in spite of all his successes, he was still “everyday people.” It did not matter if you were rich or poor, Jew, Gentile, or whatever. To Joe Brown, you were important no matter who you were or where you came from. He was no saint, but he was a good man that respected everyone. He was definitely a significant part of the human fabric into which he wove himself throughout the years of his life.
He leaves his family, relatives, friends and profession behind, but the memory of his presence will last long past his leaving.
He leaves to cherish his memory his wife, Helen C. Brown; his children, Joseph H. Brown III, Charlene D. Brown Baldwin and Jo Blackstone; three grandchildren, Ellis, Jerome and Robin; great granddaughter, Shakia; daughter-in-law, Ada Brown; son-in-law, Reverend Jimmy C. Baldwin; his brothers, Andre and Francois Brown; and a host of relatives and friends.
