'He served his community for decades': Hattiesburg icon Charles J. Brown dies at 86

Yahoo

11-02-2025

Charles Brown spent most of his life doing things to benefit the people of his hometown.
The Hattiesburg native was a man of faith, who always had a smile and a helping hand to lend. Brown died Feb. 6, but his legacy will continue for generations. He was 86.
Because of his service to his community, Brown's name is engraved on many plaques on public buildings around the Hub City, including City Hall (as the first Veteran of the Year); the Library of Hattiesburg, Petal and Forrest County; the Lake Terrace Convention Center and other Hattiesburg Convention Commission entities including the Saenger Theater, African-American Military History Museum, Kamper Park and Zoo and Eureka School.
In 2024, Brown established an endowed scholarship fund at his alma mater, William Carey University, to help Hattiesburg High School graduates who plan to go into the field of education.
'Charles J. Brown was exactly the kind of graduate we want at William Carey University," WCU President Ben Burnett said in an email. "He served his country, his family, his community for decades and his legacy will live on to serve this university for generations to come."
Long before making a lasting commitment to WCU, Brown was a founding member of the Hattiesburg Convention Commission, where he contributed to the guidance of the commission's entities, beginning with the Lake Terrace Convention Center and ending with the Sixth Street Museum District, which puts a spotlight on the city's African American struggles and successes.
'As a founding member of the Commission, I have had the privilege of working with Mr. Brown for more than three decades,' Rick Taylor, executive director of the Hattiesburg Convention Commission, said in a statement.
'Mr. Brown was instrumental in helping guide and transition the Commission from its initial mission of creating and managing the Lake Terrace Convention Center to becoming what it is today, which is a catalyst and developer of attractions that not only improve the quality of life of the people who enjoy them but also grow the economy of our city.'
The Convention Commission also operates amenities such as the city's zoo, water park and historic Saenger Theater.
'Our community should be forever grateful for his service,' Taylor said.
Education: Hattiesburg's Charles Brown endows scholarship at Carey. 'So much has been given to me'
The African American Military History Museum at the historic USO and the Historic Eureka School were among Brown's favorite restoration projects of the HCC, according to commission officials. They held sentimental value to him because of the role they played in his personal life, they said in an email.
'It is hard to put into words what Mr. Brown meant to me and the District," said Latoya Norman, director of museums for the Sixth Street Museum District. "I began working with the Commission in 2008 with very little military history knowledge, so meeting someone like Mr. Brown with his kind of experience was a bit intimidating, but I will always remember him welcoming me with open arms and offering unwavering support from the very beginning.
"He was much more than a commissioner and committee member — he was our family and we will miss him tremendously.'
Brown attended the historic Eureka School before graduating from L.J. Rowan in 1958, and worked as a janitor at the local community center formerly known as the East Sixth Street USO.
Brown was a sergeant first class in the Army, where he served 11 years. He was honorably discharged in 1969 for medical reasons, but not before he earned two Purple Hearts, two Bronze Stars for valor and many other citations while with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam.
Following his military service, Brown returned to Hattiesburg and attended William Carey University, graduating in 1973. After graduation, he joined the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, where he worked until he retired in 2000.
Brown was a lifelong member of True Light Missionary Baptist Church, where he served in many roles.
"One of the many times I was honored to hear Mr. Brown speak in public, he talked about the journey that brought him to William Carey University," Burnett said. "He said that he chose William Carey because it was somewhere he could pray."
Brown is survived by his three children, including twin sons, Jerome Brown and Jermaine Brown, and seven grandchildren.
Visitation for Charles Brown will begin at 8 a.m. Friday at the Hattiesburg Saenger Theater, 201 Forrest St., followed by a service at 11 a.m., also at the Saenger.
Memorial donations may be made to the Charles J. Brown Scholarship Fund at William Carey University at gowcu.info/brown.
Forrest Funeral Home of Hattiesburg is handling arrangements.
Lici Beveridge is a reporter for the Hattiesburg American and Clarion Ledger. Contact her at [e-mail]. Follow her on X @licibev or Facebook at facebook.com/licibeveridge.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Charles J. Brown remembered at Saenger Theater service in Hattiesburg