Longtime Oklahoma Baptist servant Glenn Austin Brown, 92, died Dec. 1 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Brown served as a Minister of Music, Education and Youth at Tulsa, Springdale; Tulsa, First; Sallisaw, First; and Oklahoma City, Britton and as Minister of Education at Ada, First. In 1971, he accepted an invitation to join the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma (BGCO) as the Associate Director of the Department of Religious Education. He also worked as the Associate Director of Planning and Promotion for the BGCO for several years before becoming the Director of Communications and Editor of their weekly newspaper, the Baptist Messenger. He became well-known and respected among Oklahoma Baptists through his writing and preaching engagements in churches across the state.
Brown was born Sept. 6, 1932 in Porum to Charles and Lavada Brown. With two grandfathers as preachers and his parents both devout Christians, he grew up with a legacy of faith. His parents lived out their faith as they cleaned up an abandoned school near their farm in the Danville, Ark. area so they could have Sunday School and worship services in that area. Because of their teaching and example, he accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior at a young age.
Upon graduating from high school in Shawnee in 1950, Brown attended Oklahoma Baptist University (OBU) to begin his college career. It was there that he met his first love, Jean Stith, and they married Dec. 22, 1951 during their sophomore year of college. During the next few years, he felt God was calling him to the ministry. He completed a B.A. in Religion and Philosophy with a minor in music from Tulsa University in 1962 and an M.A. in Educational Psychology from the University of Oklahoma (OU) in 1968.
Brown led stewardship conferences in several states and served as president of the Stewardship Development Association (Association of state stewardship development directors). He also served on the faculty at Glorieta Baptist Conference Center. He participated in short-term mission projects in 16 foreign countries and worked with denominational and mission leaders in Hong Kong, South Africa and Zimbabwe at the invitation of the Foreign Mission Board (Now the International Mission Board) to develop a plan for stewardship development projects.
Upon his retirement in 1997, the Browns moved to Fort Worth to be closer to their daughters and grandchildren. During his wife’s last several years, she required constant care due to dementia. The family watched him care for her patiently, taking care of her most basic needs.
Two years after Jean’s death in 2011 Glenn found love again, marrying Euna Hancock, who was a friend of theirs from church. They enjoyed being involved in their church, where Glenn was their Sunday School teacher and an active deacon and loved to spend time with friends and family over dinner and games.
