Age was always just a number to Buck Brown, who never let it slow him down. He took pride in his independence, shocking many by working hard and driving fast all through his elder years.
“Up until 2012, he lived by himself,” said his son, Grady Brown. “He did his own cooking and his own washing. And he didn’t ask us for anything.”
Coming from a long line of farmers, Brown was a farmer until the late 1960s, when he went on to work and raise chickens at Underwood’s poultry farm in Conyers. When the poultry farm closed down, he stayed and maintained the land for the owner, a job he kept until he was 101.
His hard work, however, wasn’t the only thing Brown used to defy his age. He also drove his 2006 Impala until he was 102, driving well and driving fast. He got the car when he was 94, which shocked several of the car salesmen, Grady Brown said.
“The salespeople were amazed, and they talked so much about his age,” he said with a laugh. “He was a good driver, but he drove fast. When he took off, the tires would scream.”
Arthur Lee “Buck” Brown, of Conyers, died Dec. 27 of natural causes at Rockdale Medical Center. He was 103. A celebration of life is scheduled for noon Saturday at Double Spring Baptist Church in Conyers. Brown & Young Home of Funerals in Lithonia is handling the arrangements.
Brown was a longtime member of Double Spring Baptist Church, where he helped with everything he could. His faith was his passion, and he exemplified this passion by serving as a longtime deacon, helping with the church’s baptisms and always “doing his share” in any fundraisers or events the church would hold, Grady Brown said.
“He was strongly religious, and he was a deacon for as long as I can remember,” he said. “I don’t ever remember him cursing, not even one time. He was a great person.”
According to those who knew him, Brown’s easygoing temperament was one of the reasons he lived such a long and happy life. He was a man of few words, and he didn’t let the small things get to him, said a longtime family friend, Linda Young.
“He didn’t fret the small things,” she said. “If he was worried about something, you didn’t know it because he wouldn’t talk about it. He was just a smooth-sailing man.”
Brown was the patriarch of his large family. His happy and loving personality was an inspiration to many, and there was rarely a time when he wasn’t smiling, Young said.
“I never saw him not smiling and happy,” she said. “He was just happy all the time.”
In addition to his son, Brown is survived by five daughters, Irene Baker of Conyers, Ethelene Lester of Covington, Stella Crawford of Decatur, Patty Zackery of Covington and Willie Kate Chaney of Decatur; 28 grandchildren; 66 great-grandchildren; and 49 great-great-grandchildren.
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