Harold BROCKUS

1937 - 2020

BROCKUS, Rev. Dr. Harold M. 83, passed away with peace in his heart on Wednesday, November 18, 2020 at St. Anthony's Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL. Harold was born on September 26, 1937 to Harold E. Brockus and Lillian Ray Brockus of Independence, MO. He was a graduate of Yale University, McCormick Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary associated with UC Berkeley where he received his doctorate. Rev. Brockus was the proud pastor of Good Samaritan Church, a Presbyterian and United Church of Christ union congregation, in Pinellas Park, FL for 33 years. Rev. Harold Brockus believed God's calling for him and those he inspired was through putting his faith into action bringing equal opportunities to all God's children and supporting "justice for all" as stated in our U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights. After helping to recruit Martin Luther King Jr. as a speaker at Yale in the late 1950s and working with teen gangs in Kansas City, MO, he decided on the ministry. In his early career he organized inter-racial "swim-ins" in Chicago, and fought for better education, decent housing and job training for Mexican farm workers in Iowa. After arriving in Pinellas County in 1970 he quickly created an interracial youth group and adult peacekeepers to walk the halls when race riots occurred at Dixie Hollins High School after integrated busing. His Church, Good Samaritan was offered as an official "Safe Space" to activist groups throughout the 1970s and 1980s. In the 1980s, Rev. Brockus' focus turned to LGBTQ rights when he inspired his congregation to become the first "More Light" Presbyterian Church (USA) in the State of Florida which lost him practically half of his congregation at the time. His fierce fight with aligned groups in the national Presbyterian Church (USA) advocating for changes in policy for gay marriage and ordination finally found success in 2005. At home, he organized a support group and Good Samaritan offered a safe place for GLBTQ crisis hotlines. As Chair of the AIDS Coalition beginning in 1989 "the organizational experience of his life" began. He helped organize a PFLAG (Parents and Friends & Family of Lesbians and Gays) chapter in the 1990s that wanted the Pinellas County school board to add "sexual orientation" to the board's anti-harassment and discrimination policy. The night the policy was being considered, a "Gay basher" group from Tampa, brought in busloads of supporters. But Harold Brockus had already filled the room with PFLAG coalition supporters. It passed by one vote. Since his retirement in 2002 he served on the Board of Directors of Bethel Farm Workers, providing legal assistance, a Head Start program, housing and a literacy program. While serving as the President of the Pinellas Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State he joined in a lawsuit with multiple civil liberties groups, a Jewish Rabbi and a Baptist minister advocating against SB98, a bill allowing "prayer" in Florida school classrooms. In their direct letter to Governor Scott they wrote, "This bill is a solution in search of a problem,' "Forcing prayer upon public-school students not only violates the rights of those students, it also demeans the spiritual significance of religious belief.' In 2006, Rev. Brockus received the prestigious Gardner W. Beckett Jr., Civil Liberties Award, from the Pinellas ACLU Chapter recognizing extraordinary contributions to the advancement of civil liberties in Pinellas County. Alongside this work he taught at Eckerd College's Leadership Institute for over 26 years. As father, grandfather and friend, Harold greatly enjoyed his final years with his beloved Westminster Shores community. He also was lifted by the many stories and accomplishments of his children and grandchildren. Harold is survived by his sister, Sandra Danner; and brothers, Eugene and Donald Brockus; his children, Sarah Brockus, Paul Brockus, Adam Brockus and Maria Brockus-Watson and their spouses and friend, Nick, Jill, Leroy and Angie along with his beloved grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Due to COVID a Memorial Service will be held at a later date at Good Samaritan Church when all can gather together safely. Please send condolence cards to Paul Brockus at 928 E. Valencia, Lakeland, FL 33805. Please make any donations in his memory to: Good Samaritan Church, Attn: Rev. Jen Daysa, Good Samaritan Church, 6085 Park Boulevard, Pinellas Park, FL 33781 or The Virginia Baxter Scholarship Fund offering college scholarships to cafeteria workers. Make checks out to: Westminster Retirement Communities Foundation (WRCF) earmarked for Virginia Baxter Scholarship Fund, Attn: DeeLynn Rivinius, Westminster Shores, 125 56th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33705.