Brown, Arthur M. (1909-2012)

BROWN, HARDING, STRAND, EMERSON, TURNQUIST

Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 3/6/2012 at 14:19:24

Arthur M. Brown
December 23, 1909 - February 9, 2012

Arthur M. Brown, 102, of Bettendorf, Iowa, died Thursday, February 9, 2012, at Trinity Pathway Hospice in Bettendorf.

Arthur Marion Brown was born December 23, 1909, in rural Storm Lake, the son of Oscar B. and Frances (Harding) Brown. He graduated from Storm Lake High School in 1928 and attended Buena Vista College. On June 1, 1947, he married Elsie L. Strand in Sheldon, Iowa. She preceded him in death on June 13, 1986.

Art was a WWII U.S. Army veteran serving from 1942 to 1945 as a Staff Sgt. in the 6th Army Headquarters, 1st Cav. Division in the South Pacific. He was stationed in Australia, New Guinea, the Philippines, and Kyoto during the occupation of Japan. He was honorably discharged on November 29, 1945, and was awarded the Good Conduct Medal and the Philippine Liberation Medal with one star.

Art farmed near Storm Lake, Iowa, on the family farm until 1935. Then, the family moved to Primghar, Iowa, where Art and his brothers farmed in a family partnership with their father. In 1971, Art and Elsie moved to Lakewood, Colorado, where Art worked for Wood Brothers Construction Company until 1975. Art and Elsie subsequently moved to Davenport in 1976.

Art was raised to the degree of Master Mason on Oct. 21, 1946. He held memberships in the Hamilton Lodge #664, the Early Morning Lodge #672, the Davenport High Twelve Club #47, the Davenport Lodge #37, the Davenport, Clinton, and Muscatine York Rite, the Grand Commandery of the Knights Templar, the St. Simon of Cyrene Commandery #9, the Mohassan Grotto, the Kaaba Shrine, the DeMolay, Amaranth, Philalethes Society, and the Davenport Order of the Eastern Star. A thirty-second degree Mason of the Scottish Rite and past Grand Officer of Royal Arch Masons of Iowa, Art was awarded the General Grand Chapter Distinguished Service Award in 1978. He also received the Knights Templar Cross of Honor, the Bronze Medal Award Royal Arch Masons, the State of Iowa Award, the Knight of Ish Sodi Royal Award, the Select Masters Award, and the KYCH Award. Art was a seventy-seven year member of the Storm Lake Iowa Order of Odd Fellows and a sixty-five year member of the Primghar American Legion Post #36 and the VFW. He was also a member of the New Hope United Methodist Church in Muscatine, Iowa.

Left to cherish Art’s memory are his daughter, Eileen (Don) Emerson, of Bettendorf; his grandchildren, Brent (Julie) Emerson, of Huxley, Iowa, Kevin (Jo Ann) Emerson, of Shawnee, Kansas, and Nicole Emerson, of New Ulm, Minnesota; his great-grandchildren, Kelli, Karlee, Grace, and Aidan; his sister-in-law, Arlene Brown, of Littleton, Colorado; and many other beloved relatives and friends.

In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by his sister, Bernice Turnquist; his brothers, Clarence Brown and Everett Brown; and his close and special friend, Inis Chapman.

A Masonic Memorial service will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 21, 2012, at the Bettendorf Masonic Center, 2412 Grant St. in Bettendorf. A service to celebrate his life will be held at the Nicklas D. Jensen Funeral Home in Alta, Iowa, on Friday, May 4, 2012. at 1:30 p.m. Burial will be in the Buena Vista Memorial Park Cemetery in Storm Lake, Iowa, where military honors will be conducted. McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home of Bettendorf is assisting the family with arrangements.

© Copyright 2012, Storm Lake Pilot Tribune

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