Robert Strickland Brown

Robert S. “Bob” Brown passed peacefully in his home on December 17, 2020, at the age of 89. A native of Atlanta, Bob served stateside in the Air Force during the Korean War and studied business at Emory University on the GI Bill before joining his father at Brown Distributing Company, which specialized in the distribution of appliances, electronics, and furniture. An avid golfer, Bob also loved swimming in the ocean, watching The Masters, Georgia Tech and Florida State football, and, above all else, flying. He earned his instrument ticket at the age of 28 and went on to fly his Cessna 182 for many years, taking his family on great adventures and always returning them safely to the earth. Bob was also a shade tree mechanic, an excellent teller of stories and jokes, and a genuinely kind and decent soul who worked hard his whole life to provide for those he cared for. Bob retired in 2005 and had just begun to enjoy his retirement when he suffered a massive stroke in 2008. For twelve years, Bob shouldered the aftermath of the stroke with grace, dignity, humor, strength, and determination, and he held on to this earth, and those he loved, with his tightest grip. He was cared for in his home by many wonderful people over the years, including Jeanette Nassourou and Fridah Mayira, whose unending patience and kindness enabled him to live his life on his own terms, with dignity and independence. A man of great faith, Bob was a dedicated servant of the Lord, a dutiful son, a generous friend, a devoted husband to his wife Joan, and a doting father to his daughters Amy Brown Sessions and Stacey Lynn Brown. He is predeceased by his father, John Clifford “JC” Brown, his mother, Kitty Chenault Gosser Brown, and his beloved sister Ruth Plaster Noble. He is survived by his wife of almost 60 years, Joan Brown, his daughters, Amy and Stacey, and their children, Morgan and Sydney Sessions and Marley Matejka. He will be deeply missed, forever loved, and always adored by his girls. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the American Stroke Association or to St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Parish in Brookhaven.