Jerry D. Brown, 88, of Conrad, passed away on Wednesday,
January 22, 2020, at Unity Point Health in Marshalltown.
Memorial services for Jerry will be held on Thursday, January
30, 2020, at 5:00 p.m. at the Mitchell Family Funeral Home in
Marshalltown. Visitation will start at 3:00 p.m. until the service
time. For more information or to send a condolence, please visit
www.mitchellfh.com or call 641-844-1234. Mitchell Family
Funeral Home is caring for Jerry and his family.
Jerry Brown was born on March 25, 1931, in Laurel, Iowa to
Kenneth and Bernice Otten Brown. After attending a year of
grade school in Melbourne, he moved to Conrad in 1937. Jerry
found the military exciting and convinced his parents to let him
attend Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri for
his sophomore and junior years; he came back and graduated
from Conrad High School in 1949. On June 1, 1952, Jerry was united in marriage to Marian Hopper at First Presbyterian Church in Marshalltown. Within a month after their marriage, Jerry was drafted into the United States Army – 27th Engineers. Training took place at Fort Leonardwood, Missouri and Fort Belvoir, Virginia and then he was stationed in Toul, France. He served his country honorably during the Korean War as a Corporal, discharging in June 1954. When he returned from the service, Marian and Jerry moved to the farm in Conrad. Utilizing the GI bill, Jerry attended classes preparing him for a lifetime of farming. He had a love for the outdoors and animals. Jerry and Marian enjoyed raising Hampshire pigs and Quarter horses. Jerry farmed alongside his father for over 40 years. He was active in numerous organizations, including Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, American Quarter Horse Association and the Conrad United Methodist Church. Jerry was a lifetime member of the American Legion and the VFW. Above all else, Jerry and Marian raised five children and enjoyed seeing them grow. They were happily married for 61 years until Marian’s death in February 2014.
Jerry is survived by his children: Bill (Kathy) Brown of Conrad,
Jan (Alan) Yegge of Ankeny, Greg (Tammy) Brown of Des
Moines, David (Dana) Brown of Gladbrook and Roger (Ellen)
Brown of Conrad. Grandchildren: Chase (Brittany) Brown,
Chad (Alyssa) Brown, Matt Yegge (Liz Fisher), Mike Yegge,
Nicole (Aaron) Kerr, Jared (Whitney) Brown, MacKenzie
Brown (James Caron), Morgan Brown, Isabelle Brown and
Julianne Brown. Great grandchildren: Avery, Camryn and
Cooper Brown; Brooklyn and Colt Brown; Benaiah Kerr;
Daemion and Braxton Caron. Jerry is also survived by his sister,
Donita (Art) Wise and niece Amy Thorne of Aurora, Colorado.
Jerry was preceded in death by his wife Marian, parents Kenneth
and Bernice Brown and nephew John Hulse.