Matt Brown

1934 - 2022

Anacortes - Matthew Earl Brown, age 87, quietly passed away on February 21, 2022 while holding hands with Kathleen, his beloved wife of 66 years.

Matt was born in Helena, Montana on April 02, 1934 to Edward O'Brien and Alice (nee Balfour) Brown. He was the "little brother" of Barbara and Charlotte. The family lived in Townsend, Montana. Ed O. Brown worked in the lumber and hardware business with his father, they had yards in Townsend and Toston. His grandfather and great-uncles also had yards in Helena.

In 1941, Ed O. Brown's uncle Willard J. Brown, Sr., who lived in Snohomish, Washington, told him of a lumberyard for sale in Anacortes. The family drove out from Montana on Easter weekend to check it out and discuss the business opportunity with Willard. Ed and Alice decided to purchase the Tucker Lumber Company, re-naming it Brown Lumber Company. The family moved to Anacortes that summer, arriving on July 1, 1941.

Matt's first camera was a Kodak Hawkeye, a gift from his parents at age 14. Ever since that day, he was hooked on photography.

He and his sisters attended the Anacortes schools. In the fall of his junior year of high school he met Kathleen Heilman, a cute girl who sat next to him in Spanish class. He asked her to "go steady" in February 1951 and gave her a small sparkplug charm, which she cherishes to this day. He graduated in the Class of 1952. Kathleen was in the Class of 1953.

For his freshman year of college, Matt attended Carroll College, previously named Mt. St. Charles, in Helena, where his father Ed and uncle Frank were alumni. He missed Kathleen too much to stay in Montana, so he transferred to Seattle University. She was a nursing student at the Univ. of WA.

Matt and Kathleen were married in August 1955 in Anacortes. They had six children: Mike, Susan, Julie, Gayle, Martin, and Sheila.

He was a self-taught photographer. In 1971 he decided to pursue his photography career on a full-time basis. He did freelance and commercial work, and displayed his prints for sale at arts & crafts shows in Anacortes and Bellevue.

Matt was an early supporter and contributor to Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve on Whidbey. And an early supporter of the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve with Jim Monroe.

Matt's commercial photography clients included industrial, refineries, construction companies, and health care facilities. Many assignments required aerial shots from small fixed wing aircraft and helicopters with the passenger door removed.

He photographed on location over 80 stories for Coastal Living Magazine in Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, the Great Lakes Region, and Canada. Matt's freelance stock photography images appeared in many advertisements and magazine articles.

He taught photography classes at Skagit Valley College for four years. Matt conducted independent photography workshops at various locations into his early 80s throughout the northwest including the San Juan Islands, Olympic Peninsula, Deception Pass State Park, Artist Point, Baker Lake Road, Whatcom Falls, the Palouse, Waterville, Columbia River Gorge, and The Painted Hills in Oregon.

He and Kathleen took many trips together to photograph around Washington, and Oregon. Their farthest road trip was driving to New England to capture the fall colors on film. Matt also traveled to China in 1984 with a group of photographers. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit and photograph southern China before it was modernized.

The things he did were not as important as how he did them. Like getting people passionately involved in photography, and developing many close friendships with other photographers.

He was an extremely wonderful husband, and entertained Kathleen for 71 years. He had a quick-wit and a marvelous sense of humor.

Matt was preceded in death by his son Martin Charlie Brown in 1970, and his sister Charlotte Breckenridge in 2020. He is survived by a sister Barbara Brundage, his beloved wife Kathleen, children Mike (Debbie), Susan, Julie (Paul), Gayle (Dave), and Sheila; grandchildren Travis, Nick, Alex, Ryan, Gwen, Rachel, Amelia, and Noah; and great-grandchildren Rory, Henrik, Elizabeth, Natalie, and Brooks; numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and many beloved friends.

There will be a memorial service on Saturday, March 5, 2022, 1 PM, at Vanderveen Farm (State Route 536, Mount Vernon, Washington). Donations can be made to: padillabayfoundation.org. To share memories of Matt with the family, please visit his online obituary at www.evanschapel.com/obituary/matt-brown