Rev. Brown was a Beloved Husband, Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather, Father-in-law, Uncle, Cousin, Coach, Teacher, Mentor Leader, Pastor, Prison Evangelist, Servant and Child of God.
He was a man full of wisdom who served the 'least' with humility, love and integrity. In his words, "Be a giver not a taker. Live and lead by example."
Perhaps best known for his work with the prison ministry bearing his name, Brown retired in 2007 as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of College Hill, where he had served since 1993.
The youngest of three children, Abraham Robert Brown was born in a small clapboard house on Harrison Alley in Tampa's Belmont Heights. He was just a toddler when his father left home; his mother cleaned to pay the bills. Brown attended Middleton High School, winning a football scholarship to Florida A&M.
He returned to Tampa after college and began his career as a physical education teacher at Carver Junior High School. Over the years, he taught and coached at Middleton, Blake, Jefferson and Chamberlain high schools. His no-nonsense approach brought him the nickname "Mean Dean Brown." Brown also gained a reputation for his quiet leadership in the civil rights arena. When violence followed the death of a drug suspect in police custody in 1989, Brown took to the streets of College Hill with then-Mayor Sandy Freedman to calm tensions.
In the mid-1970s, Brown learned one of his former players had been charged with murder. He began visiting prisons and his Abe Brown Ministries eventually would grow to provide outreach to inmates and assistance to ex-offenders and their families.
Rev. Brown is preceded in death by several family members.
He leaves to cherish his memories: A loving and devoted wife, Altamese; 3 caring daughters, Ouida Lanier Brown, Vanessa Bennett (Daryl), and Kimberly Blount (Robert); 5 grandchildren, Verdresa Mitchell-Marshall (Adrian), Abraham Mitchell, Miles and Morgan Bennett, Pierce Blount; 4 great grandchildren, Jaylen, Wayne-Jairus, Jzsleigh, and Raleigh IV; sister-in-law, Arthenia Brown; Devoted cousins, Gloria Elliott, Katrina Elliott, William Gordon, Richard Whaley, Cynthia Whaley, Luther Whaley, Roscoe Gordon, Carol Nelson-Taylor and Family, Cynthia Jones (Vincent) and Family, Sidney Nelson (Tarsha) and Family; and a host of other cousins and family members.
Rev. Brown is also mourned by the staff and many volunteers of Abe Brown Ministries, Inc.; members and friends of First Baptist Church of College Hill.
The family asks that contributions be made to Live the Brown LegacyTM Memorial Fund, which will benefit Abe Brown Ministries, the prison ministry that was founded in 1976 by Rev. Brown.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 18th at 11:00 a.m. at Exciting Idelwild, 18371 N. Dale Mabry Hwy, Lutz, FL. The visitation will be held Friday at the the First Baptist Church of College Hill, 3838 N. 29th Street, Tampa, FL 2 - 8:00 p.m. with the family being present from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. A wake service will be held from 7 - 8:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers please make contributions to: "Live the Brown Legacy Memorial Fund", P. O. Box 11453, Tampa, FL 33680
He was a man full of wisdom who served the 'least' with humility, love and integrity. In his words, "Be a giver not a taker. Live and lead by example."
Perhaps best known for his work with the prison ministry bearing his name, Brown retired in 2007 as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of College Hill, where he had served since 1993.
The youngest of three children, Abraham Robert Brown was born in a small clapboard house on Harrison Alley in Tampa's Belmont Heights. He was just a toddler when his father left home; his mother cleaned to pay the bills. Brown attended Middleton High School, winning a football scholarship to Florida A&M.
He returned to Tampa after college and began his career as a physical education teacher at Carver Junior High School. Over the years, he taught and coached at Middleton, Blake, Jefferson and Chamberlain high schools. His no-nonsense approach brought him the nickname "Mean Dean Brown." Brown also gained a reputation for his quiet leadership in the civil rights arena. When violence followed the death of a drug suspect in police custody in 1989, Brown took to the streets of College Hill with then-Mayor Sandy Freedman to calm tensions.
In the mid-1970s, Brown learned one of his former players had been charged with murder. He began visiting prisons and his Abe Brown Ministries eventually would grow to provide outreach to inmates and assistance to ex-offenders and their families.
Rev. Brown is preceded in death by several family members.
He leaves to cherish his memories: A loving and devoted wife, Altamese; 3 caring daughters, Ouida Lanier Brown, Vanessa Bennett (Daryl), and Kimberly Blount (Robert); 5 grandchildren, Verdresa Mitchell-Marshall (Adrian), Abraham Mitchell, Miles and Morgan Bennett, Pierce Blount; 4 great grandchildren, Jaylen, Wayne-Jairus, Jzsleigh, and Raleigh IV; sister-in-law, Arthenia Brown; Devoted cousins, Gloria Elliott, Katrina Elliott, William Gordon, Richard Whaley, Cynthia Whaley, Luther Whaley, Roscoe Gordon, Carol Nelson-Taylor and Family, Cynthia Jones (Vincent) and Family, Sidney Nelson (Tarsha) and Family; and a host of other cousins and family members.
Rev. Brown is also mourned by the staff and many volunteers of Abe Brown Ministries, Inc.; members and friends of First Baptist Church of College Hill.
The family asks that contributions be made to Live the Brown LegacyTM Memorial Fund, which will benefit Abe Brown Ministries, the prison ministry that was founded in 1976 by Rev. Brown.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 18th at 11:00 a.m. at Exciting Idelwild, 18371 N. Dale Mabry Hwy, Lutz, FL. The visitation will be held Friday at the the First Baptist Church of College Hill, 3838 N. 29th Street, Tampa, FL 2 - 8:00 p.m. with the family being present from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. A wake service will be held from 7 - 8:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers please make contributions to: "Live the Brown Legacy Memorial Fund", P. O. Box 11453, Tampa, FL 33680
Rev. Brown was a Beloved Husband, Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather, Father-in-law, Uncle, Cousin, Coach, Teacher, Mentor Leader, Pastor, Prison Evangelist, Servant and Child of God.
He was a man full of wisdom who served the 'least' with humility, love and integrity. In his words, "Be a giver not a taker. Live and lead by example."
Perhaps best known for his work with the prison ministry bearing his name, Brown retired in 2007 as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of College Hill, where he had served since 1993.
The youngest of three children, Abraham Robert Brown was born in a small clapboard house on Harrison Alley in Tampa's Belmont Heights. He was just a toddler when his father left home; his mother cleaned to pay the bills. Brown attended Middleton High School, winning a football scholarship to Florida A&M.
He returned to Tampa after college and began his career as a physical education teacher at Carver Junior High School. Over the years, he taught and coached at Middleton, Blake, Jefferson and Chamberlain high schools. His no-nonsense approach brought him the nickname "Mean Dean Brown." Brown also gained a reputation for his quiet leadership in the civil rights arena. When violence followed the death of a drug suspect in police custody in 1989, Brown took to the streets of College Hill with then-Mayor Sandy Freedman to calm tensions.
In the mid-1970s, Brown learned one of his former players had been charged with murder. He began visiting prisons and his Abe Brown Ministries eventually would grow to provide outreach to inmates and assistance to ex-offenders and their families.
Rev. Brown is preceded in death by several family members.
He leaves to cherish his memories: A loving and devoted wife, Altamese; 3 caring daughters, Ouida Lanier Brown, Vanessa Bennett (Daryl), and Kimberly Blount (Robert); 5 grandchildren, Verdresa Mitchell-Marshall (Adrian), Abraham Mitchell, Miles and Morgan Bennett, Pierce Blount; 4 great grandchildren, Jaylen, Wayne-Jairus, Jzsleigh, and Raleigh IV; sister-in-law, Arthenia Brown; Devoted cousins, Gloria Elliott, Katrina Elliott, William Gordon, Richard Whaley, Cynthia Whaley, Luther Whaley, Roscoe Gordon, Carol Nelson-Taylor and Family, Cynthia Jones (Vincent) and Family, Sidney Nelson (Tarsha) and Family; and a host of other cousins and family members.
Rev. Brown is also mourned by the staff and many volunteers of Abe Brown Ministries, Inc.; members and friends of First Baptist Church of College Hill.
The family asks that contributions be made to Live the Brown LegacyTM Memorial Fund, which will benefit Abe Brown Ministries, the prison ministry that was founded in 1976 by Rev. Brown.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 18th at 11:00 a.m. at Exciting Idelwild, 18371 N. Dale Mabry Hwy, Lutz, FL. The visitation will be held Friday at the the First Baptist Church of College Hill, 3838 N. 29th Street, Tampa, FL 2 - 8:00 p.m. with the family being present from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. A wake service will be held from 7 - 8:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers please make contributions to: "Live the Brown Legacy Memorial Fund", P. O. Box 11453, Tampa, FL 33680
He was a man full of wisdom who served the 'least' with humility, love and integrity. In his words, "Be a giver not a taker. Live and lead by example."
Perhaps best known for his work with the prison ministry bearing his name, Brown retired in 2007 as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of College Hill, where he had served since 1993.
The youngest of three children, Abraham Robert Brown was born in a small clapboard house on Harrison Alley in Tampa's Belmont Heights. He was just a toddler when his father left home; his mother cleaned to pay the bills. Brown attended Middleton High School, winning a football scholarship to Florida A&M.
He returned to Tampa after college and began his career as a physical education teacher at Carver Junior High School. Over the years, he taught and coached at Middleton, Blake, Jefferson and Chamberlain high schools. His no-nonsense approach brought him the nickname "Mean Dean Brown." Brown also gained a reputation for his quiet leadership in the civil rights arena. When violence followed the death of a drug suspect in police custody in 1989, Brown took to the streets of College Hill with then-Mayor Sandy Freedman to calm tensions.
In the mid-1970s, Brown learned one of his former players had been charged with murder. He began visiting prisons and his Abe Brown Ministries eventually would grow to provide outreach to inmates and assistance to ex-offenders and their families.
Rev. Brown is preceded in death by several family members.
He leaves to cherish his memories: A loving and devoted wife, Altamese; 3 caring daughters, Ouida Lanier Brown, Vanessa Bennett (Daryl), and Kimberly Blount (Robert); 5 grandchildren, Verdresa Mitchell-Marshall (Adrian), Abraham Mitchell, Miles and Morgan Bennett, Pierce Blount; 4 great grandchildren, Jaylen, Wayne-Jairus, Jzsleigh, and Raleigh IV; sister-in-law, Arthenia Brown; Devoted cousins, Gloria Elliott, Katrina Elliott, William Gordon, Richard Whaley, Cynthia Whaley, Luther Whaley, Roscoe Gordon, Carol Nelson-Taylor and Family, Cynthia Jones (Vincent) and Family, Sidney Nelson (Tarsha) and Family; and a host of other cousins and family members.
Rev. Brown is also mourned by the staff and many volunteers of Abe Brown Ministries, Inc.; members and friends of First Baptist Church of College Hill.
The family asks that contributions be made to Live the Brown LegacyTM Memorial Fund, which will benefit Abe Brown Ministries, the prison ministry that was founded in 1976 by Rev. Brown.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, September 18th at 11:00 a.m. at Exciting Idelwild, 18371 N. Dale Mabry Hwy, Lutz, FL. The visitation will be held Friday at the the First Baptist Church of College Hill, 3838 N. 29th Street, Tampa, FL 2 - 8:00 p.m. with the family being present from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. A wake service will be held from 7 - 8:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers please make contributions to: "Live the Brown Legacy Memorial Fund", P. O. Box 11453, Tampa, FL 33680
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