Shirley Agnes Brown

Her husband, Harvey Brown and her sons, Steve Brown and Chris Brown, are sad to announce the peaceful and quiet passing of their wife and mother, Shirley Agnes Brown (nee Wilson), aged 93, at the Queensway Carleton Hospital on Monday, August 14, 2023 after a worsening of her long-standing heart failure. Harvey and Steve, from Kanata and Chris, from Calgary, were at her bedside. She is further survived by her brother, Ross Wilson of Fallowfield and her daughter-in-law, Jane Lemaire of Calgary and her granddaughters Garielle Brown of Calgary and Pier Brown of Victoria. She is predeceased by her brothers Tom Wilson of Thunder Bay and Bruce Wilson of Richmond.

Shirley was born and raised on Fernbank Road (“the 10th line”) east of Stittsville. Her upbringing on the farm taught her the common sense, resilience, toughness of spirit, practicality, and sense of humour that she demonstrated right to the end of her life. Her sons would like to think that these characteristics were successfully passed on to them through her guidance.

She grew up playing fastball with her brothers and was an excellent student graduating from Nepean high school at the age of 13! Shirley then trained and worked as a seed analyst at the Experimental Farm. During this time she met her future husband Harvey who is from Sandy Hill. They were married in 1952. She passed away just days before their 71st wedding anniversary. Harvey had joined the Royal Canadian Air Force which meant that they raised their two boys at postings all across Canada and in Europe. They were posted back to Ottawa in 1970 and have lived in Bells Corners or Kanata since then.  After retirement the pair embarked on a dizzying series of ocean cruises which saw them pretty much exhaust what was available and to duplicate some of their favourites. For the last six years Shirley and Harvey have been living at the Red Oak retirement residence in Kanata and this has provided them with a whole host of new friends and a new energy for life. Shirley renewed her reputation as a euchre card shark and seemed to have a good luck charm at bingo.

Shirley continues to look down upon us reassuring us that all is well. Her granddaughter Pier in Victoria said she saw the most spectacular Perseid meteor shower in the sky and the most intense bioluminescence in the ocean that she had ever seen the night after Shirley passed away. Shirley, mom…we will see you down the line.  

Family and friends are invited to a Memorial Reception at the Garden Chapel of Tubman Funeral Homes, 3440 Richmond Road, Nepean (between Bayshore and Baseline Road) Tuesday, September 26, 2023, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.