Brown, Bradley

BROWN, Sr., Dr. Bradley D.

Rev. Dr. Bradley D. Brown, Sr., 88, of Marietta, GA entered the presence of his Savior on Thursday, February 1, 2024, at Arbor Terrace Burnt Hickory in Marietta. Ordained a minister of the gospel at the age of 17, Dr. Brown devoted his life to the Great Commission, serving as pastor in Baptist churches throughout Georgia and Kentucky, then as missionary in the nation of Liberia where he and his beloved wife Carolyn labored together with Liberian Baptists for 37 years, and finally as pastor of his boyhood home church of Crestview Baptist (Grace Pointe Marietta). He was known for his dedication to Christ, his booming laugh, his loving interest in those he met, and his fierce devotion to his wife and family. Dr. Brown was born in December 1935 in Elberton, GA, to Ernest E. and Bonnie (Strickland) Brown. The family eventually settled in the Fair Oaks community of Marietta, where Bradley attended the Robert L. Osborne Grammar School from the first grade through high school graduation in 1954. During this time, he exhibited what would be an ongoing love for music, raising a clear tenor singing voice and playing the piano almost to the end of his life. His younger days revolved around family, school, and Crestview Baptist Church, where his dear mother encouraged his active involvement in the Royal Ambassadors (RAs). It was during his first RA summer camp in Toccoa, GA that he invited Jesus Christ into his life and began his life- long journey of faith. Dr. Brown served as pastor of First Baptist Church Vinings, GA during his senior year of high school before attending Mercer University, where he met and married Carolyn Folsom of East Point, GA, who shared his devotion to Christ and call to the mission field. They were married on June 14, 1957. Following his graduation with a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1958, they attended the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY where he obtained his Master of Divinity and Master of Religious Education degrees before they departed for Liberia as missionaries with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board. Dr. Brown and his wife Carolyn arrived in Liberia in 1963 to live and work in Zwedru/Tchien, Lower Buchanan/Bassa County, and Paynesville/Greater Monrovia. He, alongside a host of Liberia Baptists, worked together to found and build the Baptist Training Center in Schiefflin in 1969, later to become the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary in 1976. He became the First and Founding President of the seminary, shepherding the full accreditation of the school, presiding over the first graduating classes, and writing the beloved seminary hymn, "Servants of God who Do His Will." During this time he also completed a Master of Arts in African Studies from Howard University and completed his Doctor of Ministry degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Beginning in 1983, Dr. Brown served as Executive Director of the Southern Baptist Mission in Liberia, and he and Carolyn then spent the last ten years of their Liberian sojourn working in civil war relief, engaging in the ministry of presence, and teaching at the Liberia Baptist Seminary. The Browns were the last Southern Baptist missionaries permanently assigned to work in Liberia at the time they retired in 2000. Dr. Brown then was called to pastor Crestview Church until his official retirement in 2008. He never retired from "The King's Business," however, but rather continued to reach hearts as an Ambassador for Christ throughout Marietta and his assisted living community. In retirement, he and Carolyn were members at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, where he loved to encourage the pastor and young ministers, sing along vigorously with the choir, and praise the Lord for His goodness with hands raised high. He wrote poetry, played the piano, sang hymns, and mentored his children and grandchildren to the end. Dr. Brown's memory lives on in the hearts of his family and co-laborers in Georgia, Liberia, and around the world, with whom he shared the vision of proclaiming the gospel and training future generations of ministers and missionaries. Dr. Brown is survived by the love of his life, his wife Carolyn; and their four children: Lydia (David) Lawrence, Deborah (Kevin) Gregg, Miriam (Robert) Kindred, and Bradley Jr. (Heather). He is also survived by grandchildren, Samuel, Caleb, and Leah Lawrence, Seth Bradley Gregg, and Luke and Mark (Rebekah) Kindred; a brother, Reid D. Brown; a sister, Betty B. Parsons; and a host of nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Global Ministries Fund at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, or to Southern Baptist Global Relief Ministries (sendrelief.org). The family will receive friends on Thursday evening, February 8, 2024, from 5 - 7 PM at Mayes Ward Dobbins Funeral Home, 180 Church St., Marietta, GA 30060. Funeral services will be held on Friday morning, February 9, 2024, at 10:00 PM in the Chapel of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, 955 Johnson Ferry Rd., Marietta, GA 30068. A program of sacred piano music begins at 9:45. Interment will be at Kennesaw Memorial Park, 1306 Whitlock Ave., Marietta, GA 30064 beginning at 2:30 PM. In order to participate in the escorted procession to the cemetery, please arrive at Mayes Ward Dobbins in Marietta by 1:45.

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