BROWN, Rev. Gordon "Tom" Thomas, Jr., 74, of Midlothian, Va. claimed the promise of the resurrection January 3, 2022. He was preceded in death by his parents, Sarah Cooper Fleck Brown and Gordon Thomas Brown, Sr. (Elizabeth Purcell Brown). He is survived by his son, Matthew Foster Brown (Carrie Beth Hensley Brown) of Bridgewater, Va.; daughter, Sarah Nelson Bush (David Bush) of N. Chesterfield, Va.; granddaughter, Rachel Ann Nelson of N. Chesterfield, Va.; cousin, Betsy Hare Buchtel (Mark Buchtel) of Sunnyvale, Ca.; step-sister, France Purcell-Abbott (James Abbott) of North Carolina; and almost son, Ronald D. Pieronski, of Mechanicsville, Va. He graduated from Bridgewater College and went on to earn a Master's Degree from Wesley Theological Seminary. Tom was a pastor in the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church. He most recently served Ivey UMC in Colonial Heights, Va. and St. Luke's UMC in N. Chesterfield, Va. He also served Main Street UMC, South Boston Va., Southview UMC of Roanoke, Va., Washington Farm UMC of Alexandria, Va., Providence UMC of Suffolk, Va. and Gainesville/Woodland charge of Northern Va. Since 1993, Tom was very active as a spiritual director in Emmaus, both in the Southside Community and the Richmond Community. From 2006 to 2018 he was Community Spiritual Director in the Richmond Community. He served on teams of Emmaus walks (both men's and women's), Chrysalis flights and Epiphany weekends—67 in all. Tom was a volunteer EMT and firefighter; later he became a police chaplain, last serving Chesterfield County. A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Easter Seal Society or Heifer International.