William Brown

1941 - 2022

William Brown
04/14/1941 - 07/30/2022
WILLIAM LEE BROWN

William Lee Brown, 81, passed away peacefully at home in Houston, Texas, on Saturday, July 30, 2022, in the company of his sons, after battling cancer. Bill was born on April 14, 1941, in Dallas, Texas, to Alton and Venus "Pat" Brown. He is preceded in death by his parents, his brother Robert Brown, and just 17 months ago by his beloved wife Nan Doubet Brown. He is survived by his three sons, Jed (Belinda) of Laredo, Doak (Jennifer) of Houston, and Wil (Erin) of Houston, as well as his sister-in-law, Janis Brown of Kingsland, two brothers-in-law, Chuck (Sandie) Doubet of Katy, and Tad (Vicki) Doubet of Metamora, Illinois, plus many nieces and nephews. Bill was extremely proud of his five grandchildren: Walker, Cade, Blakely, Harper, and Hutton.

Growing up in Midland, Texas, Bill was an exceptional athlete, graduating from Midland High School in 1960, and then attending the University of Arizona on a baseball scholarship. He was a four-year starting first baseman and team captain, playing for an Arizona Wildcats team that was ranked number one and another that played in the College World Series. He graduated from Arizona with a Bachelor's degree in Architecture in 1966.

Bill's biggest and, as he would say, most important pursuit in college was winning the love of his life, Nan Doubet, of Peoria, Illinois. Bill and Nan married on August 7, 1965, and after Bill's graduation from Arizona, settled in Houston, where Bill pursued a Master's Degree in Architecture at Rice University. In 1970, after graduating from Rice, Bill became a licensed architect. After practicing with a design firm for a brief time, Bill's entrepreneurial spirit led him to launch Brownstone, his own development and construction company. Over Bill's 50-year career, he participated in the design, development, and construction of nearly 20,000 housing units across eight states.

Beginning in 2005, each of Bill's sons migrated to the family business, and the combination of their talents, experience, and leadership skills led to the success of Brownstone's multifamily development and construction companies. The last 17 years of Bill's life, working daily alongside his sons and so many talented colleagues, were undoubtedly his most fulfilling and proudest professional years.

Bill's favorite times were spent with his beloved family and his many friends. He loved watching his three sons play sports at West University Little League, River Oaks Baptist School, and The Kinkaid School. The family spent many happy days at Lake Conroe, their Galveston Bay house, and beautiful Crested Butte, Colorado, which held a special place in Bill's heart. About 15 years ago, Bill fulfilled a lifelong dream of designing a home on Lake LBJ in Kingsland, Texas, where he was able to enjoy time with his brother Bobby.

An avid outdoorsman, Bill made many happy memories with his sons, friends, and his grandchildren hunting deer and dove at his hunting lease outside Laredo, Texas, fishing in Port O'Connor, Texas, searching for arrowheads, and always ending the day with a whisky by a campfire. He was also an avid aviator, logging many hours in his Bonanza and vintage 1948 Stinson tail dragger.

The family would like to extend our heartfelt thanks and love to Nancy Sparks for 53 years of help and friendship. We would also like to thank Derick and Bill from Care Take Services for their skilled care of Bill these last three weeks at home, as well as Morgan from Houston Hospice, who provided compassionate care and sound guidance to Bill and his family. Jed, Doak, and Wil must also thank their uncle, Tad Doubet, who was a big help and close companion to Bill over the last couple months of Bill's life.

A celebration of Bill's life will be held at St. Luke's United Methodist Church on August 12, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. with a reception to follow. The service can be live-streamed at https://www.stlukesmethodist.org/bill-brown/. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to The University of Arizona Nan Doubet Brown Scholarship (https://give.uafoundation.org/education, choose "I would like to support", choose "Other-Please Specify", write in "Nan Doubet Brown Scholarship") or Angel Flight South Central (www.angelflightsc.org).