Benny Brown

September 4, 1948 - May 16, 2016

Mr. Benny Brown, age 67, a resident of Columbia, passed away Monday, May 16, 2016 at his residence.

A funeral service will be held on Friday at 11AM at Heritage Funeral Home with Pastor Rick Points officiating. Burial will follow in Polk Memorial Gardens with military honors provided by the United States Army. The family will receive friends for visitation on Thursday from 4–7 PM at the funeral home with a Masonic Service beginning at 7 PM. Heritage Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Born on September 4, 1948 in Knoxville, TN, Benny was the son of the late William E. “Bailey” Brown and the late Louise Ward Lay. He was a 1978 graduate of Moses High School in Washington and attended Davenport University for Business and Accounting. He was a retired veteran of the United States Army where he served two terms during the Vietnam and Korean Wars. He worked as a security guard for U.S. Gypsum for twenty years and was a member of Williamsport Baptist Church. Benny was a Shriner and 32nd Degree Mason of the Palenstine Masonic Lodge in Michigan. He loved donating to charities including: Disabled American Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Paralyzed Veterans of America, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, American Red Cross, Lakota Boys & Girls, St. Jospeh’s Indian School, United Way, and many others. Benny loved to help raise his sister’s children while her husband worked. He also enjoyed reading and spending time with his family, and he adored his cat, Sissy Girl.

He is survived by his sister: Betty Hopkins; several nieces and nephews; and very special long time friend: Phyllis Sifers. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife: Alice Skriver; half brothers: Paul Brown, Ralph Brown; niece: Regina Crabtree Copley; brother-in-law: Joe Hopkins, Jr.; and several aunts and uncles.

Family and friends will serve as pallbearers.

The family requests the memorial donations be made to Disabled American Veterans or to Any Cancer Society.