Virginia Beach —Sam C. Brown, Jr., 89, a native of Charleston, S.C., peacefully passed away Thursday afternoon, Feb. 12, 2015.
He was born September 28, 1925, in Charleston, S. C., the oldest son of Sam and Hannah Brown. A childhood spent on the beaches and waters of Sullivan’s Island left him with a lifelong love of boating and fishing, which he generously shared with family and friends.
An Eagle Scout and WWII Army veteran, he proudly served with the 167th Engineer Combat Battalion as they built bridges and roads used by Patton’s Third Army throughout France, Belgium and Germany. He remained close to the other members of the 167th, organizing annual reunions where they shared memories of their WWII experiences together. Instilled with a passion and appreciation from his father to build and engineer, he received his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from Clemson University in 1948 and began a career developing, building and managing power generation and environmental technologies in use today. Starting as an efficiency engineer with Virginia Power and retiring 35 years later as a senior vice president of Power Station Engineering and Technical Assessment, he had a profound and positive impact in every task and position he undertook with the company.
After his retirement from Dominion Resources, he served as chairman of the Air Pollution Control Board for the State of Virginia and was routinely called upon by state and federal policy makers regarding environmental and energy matters because of his deep and balanced understanding of complex issues. He was a founding member of the Science Museum of Virginia, an ASME Fellow with 65 years of service and a tireless fundraiser for countless charities, including the United Way and Virginia Union University.
Devoted to his family, a great husband, father, grandfather and friend; his profound sense of humor and poignant storytelling will be missed and remembered with great fondness by all those who knew him. Along with his parents and a sister, Sam was preceded in death by his wife of 61 years, Rose. He is survived a son, Samuel C. (Shelly) Brown III , of Cordova, Tenn.; daughter, Lisa (Vernon) Whitaker, of Charlotte, N.C.; and five grandchildren. A graveside service was held at Huguenin Ave Cemetery, Huguenin Avenue, Charleston, S.C. with Rabbi Alexander officiating. Memorial contributions may be made in his honor to the National Parkinson’s Foundation.