Crawford, Shirley
CRAWFORD (BROWN), Shirley
Shirley Brown Crawford, the eldest child of Newton Morgan Brown, Jr. of Atlanta and Ruby Braswell Brown of Edison, Georgia, was born on Christmas Day of 1933. She was followed by her sister, Sandra, and brother, Buddy. Shirley flourished at Atlanta's Joseph E. Brown High School, where she was named vice-president of her class and was voted "Most Attractive". She then matriculated at Auburn University, where she pledged Tri Delt. Shirley married Paul Frank Crawford and raised two daughters, Karyn and Paulette. In addition, she founded and headed Brownie Floral Novelties. Offering terrariums and dish gardens, Shirley cherished the friendships developed with customers over decades of travel throughout much of Georgia and Tennessee. Even more of her friends were members of the Dunwoody Baptist Church. Shirley sang in its choir and actively participated in other activities of her church until the end of her life. She also enjoyed card games with her long-time friends. Shirley perished unexpectedly from complications following cardiovascular surgery. She was predeceased by her husband of 61 years, Paul Frank Crawford; sister, Sandra Pearl Brown; and brother, Newton M. "Buddy" Brown, III. Shirley is survived by her daughters, Karyn Crawford Nixon and Paulette Crawford Henderson (Clark); grandchildren, Lane Crawford Henderson, Caroline Brown Nixon, John Maddox Nixon, Jr., and Paul Bryce Henderson; nieces, Donna Crawford Taefi (Tarokh), June Borg Arnold, and Jennifer Brown Miller; nephews, Leonard E. Borg, Jr., Bruce A. Crawford (Faye), Matthew Charles Brown (Paloma), and Joseph Morgan Brown (Amanda); and daughter-in-law, Cathy Brown Serra. A visitation will be held at Dunwoody Baptist Church on Wednesday, November 2 at 10 AM. A memorial service will follow at 11 AM. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Dunwoody Baptist Church.
