Raymond A. Brown

Raymond A. Brown, 82, of Newton died on Monday, July 4, 2016, at Mercy Medical Center.  A funeral service will be held at 1 p.m., Friday, July 8, at the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory.  The family will greet friends from 5 to 7 p.m., Thursday, July 7, at the funeral home.  Memorials to the Jasper County Senior Citizens’ Center or Hickory Grove Cemetery may be left at the funeral home. If mailing, please add, “Attn: Brown Family” to the envelope.

Raymond Brown was born, raised, farmed and lived his life in Jasper County — following in the footsteps of his great grandfather Nelson Lafayette Brown, grandfather Emory F. Brown, and father Leroy W. Brown.

The eldest of six children of Leroy and Lois (Hammer) Brown, Raymond was born March 6, 1934, in Grinnell. Raymond and his brothers (Walter, Delmar, and Lyle) and sisters (Doris and Irene) enjoyed the life of most 1940s and 50s era Iowa farm kids; filled with hard work, sibling rivalry (sometimes involving pitch forks), social events at Newburg school and family reunions.

1952 was a big year in Ray’s life. He graduated from Newburg High, worked at Maytag in Newton and married Marie Eversdyk.

Uncle Sam called Ray’s name in 1956 and he spent two years in the U.S. Army and 10 in the Army Reserves. After leaving active duty, Raymond worked briefly at Lang’s Dairy in Grinnell before he and Marie began farming. Ray taught his “town girl” the art of farming, and together they shared the traditions of living on a farm with their four children (Billie, Carol, Donna and Michael) that included walking beans, chasing runaway hogs (and a few pet piglets), and the care and feeding of dairy cattle (and calves).

Farming Jasper county’s rolling hills (with his Oliver and Allis Chalmers tractors), Ray was an early practitioner of conservation, adding terraces, contours, grass slopes, and other features that preserved Iowa’s precious soil and water. He was a Jasper County Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner for 20 years, and was named a state outstanding commissioner in 1997.

Raymond was also a member of the Hickory Grove Church and the Jasper County Historical Society, where he had served on the board. He enjoyed old tractors, watching old Westerns, reading, bird and squirrel watching and music.

Music was always present in the Brown home. Stringed instruments of all shapes and sizes, electric organs, clarinets, saxophones, and bassoons were always present, and singing filled the house and the barn. Raymond’s love of music blossomed over the years; he performed in blue grass groups and jam sessions with anyone who would join him, and was part of a jam group that played every Thursday at the Jasper County Senior Citizens’ Center. We are all richer for it.

Raymond was a devoted grandfather. Nobody loved birthday and Christmas shopping for Lauren, Lucas and Leo more ... not to mention his personal attention to gift wrapping. The makers of tape will definitely notice a sales slump this fall. But the legacy he left them, his children, and all of those lucky enough to know and love him, is priceless.

Raymond was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Carol Kayser; and sister, Doris Clements.

Those left to honor Raymond’s memory include his wife, Marie of Newton; children: Billie (Jim) Bailey of Cedar Falls, Donna Brown (Virgil Ulrey) of Newton, and Michael Brown (Michelle Clancy) of Cedar Falls; a son-in-law, Brad Conradi of Cedar Falls; his grandchildren: Lauren (Logan) Vander Wiel, Lucas Clancy Brown, and Leo Clancy Brown; and his siblings: Walter (Marjorie) Brown of Vancouver, Wash., Delmar (Susie) Brown of Iowa City, Lyle (Janet) Brown of Grinnell, and Irene Brown of Berkeley, Calif.