John H. Brown

Jack (John) Brown was born on July 6, 1933 in Cleveland, Ohio as the youngest of four children, growing up with his family in the Union-Miles Park neighborhood, and graduated from South High School in 1951.

He lived in Newbury, Ohio from 1966 until April 18, 2023, when he died at home. Jack was preceded in death by his parents, George and Myrtle (Swan) Brown; by his brother, George Brown, Jr. (d. 2019); and by his sisters Ethel Murray (d. 1988) and Eleanor Cummings (d. 2022).

Jack was also preceded in death by his beloved wife of 26 years, Marge (Tretera) Brown, who died in 1993. In addition, he was the life partner of Gloria Messner from 1994 until her death in 2008.

He is survived by his son, Jeff Brown of Ithaca, NY, who he adopted as an infant along with Marge, and raised as his son. He also has two grandchildren, Jeff’s daughters Thalia (7) and Celeste (3) along with his partner, Kumari Amy Weaver. In his son’s youth, he volunteered as a baseball coach and attended most of Jeff’s sporting events.

Jack worked as a drafter from 1951-96, converting the designs of engineers into technical drawings for a manufacturing company. He worked for the same company (Air-Maze) for 45 years first in Cleveland, then in Bedford Heights, and finally in Stow, Ohio.

Jack was a devoted grandson, son, husband, father, and grandfather, always offering his support with humility and grace, and accompanying with unconditional support the key women who preceded him in death including his grandmother, mother, sister, wife, and life partner. Throughout his life, Jack enjoyed working on carpentry, repair, and building projects at his home and with family members, and also enjoyed playing the accordion.

If you would like to make a gift of support to honor Jacks’ life, in lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the charitable nonprofit organization that his son Jeff leads, the Center for Nonviolent Communication (https://cnvc.company.site/Donate-to-the-Center-for-Nonviolent-Communication-p455835020).

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.neptunesociety.com/location/cleveland-cremation for the Brown family.