Wilbur C “Doc” Brown

Funeral services for Dr. Wilbur C. “Doc” Brown, 91, of Greenville, will be conducted on Monday, December 3, 2018 at 12:00 at Springfield Baptist Church 600 East McBee Avenue Greenville, SC. 29601

Dr. Brown passed on Monday November 26, 2018, at St. Francis Hospital Downtown. Born in Prosperity, South Carolina, he was a son of the late Flimmun  Brown and Mattie Suber Brown.

Dr. Brown served in the US Army Air Force in the South Pacific after World War II. He then went on to attend Benedict College where he graduated with a degree in Mathematics and Science. He used this degree to pursue his passion for education. He began his career as an educator in Marion, SC where he taught at Marion High School as a Mathematics and Science Teacher from 1950-1955.  After moving to Greenville, SC, Dr. Brown became employed with Anderson County School District One and taught at Spearman High School as a Mathematics and Science teacher from 1955-1966. While teaching at Spearman High School, he obtained his Masters in Educational Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University in 1964.

As he continued to climb the education career ladder, Dr. Brown became a teaching principal at Wren Elementary from 1966-1967. He then served as principal of Spearman High School from 1968-1970. After the last class of Spearman High School graduated, he went back to Wren Elementary and was principal from 1970-1973. Due to his passion for education and thirst for knowledge, he took a brief leave of absence while he attended the University of Southern Mississippi. At the University of Southern Mississippi, he majored in Elementary Education, minored in Education Administration, and graduated in 1976 with a Doctorate of Education in Curriculum and Instruction. After completing his Doctorate, he continued as principal at Wren Elementary until he retired from the Anderson County School District.

Along with his love for education, Dr. Brown also thoroughly enjoyed electronics. While he was working in Anderson County, he also owned and operated a small business in the Nicholtown area where he fixed primarily televisions and radios. After his retirement from education, this business became his full-time job. Although he thoroughly enjoyed this, his passion for education came calling once again and he joined the faculty of Morris College in Sumter, SC. While there, he held many positions. He served as Director of Program to Improve Elementary Education, Director of Foundation Grants, Associate Professor of Education and Mathematics, Director of Practicum Students Enrolled in Education, and he traveled as a Representative of Consortium for Emerging Predominately Minority Colleges and Universities in the South and Southeast United States. After working at Morris College from 1987-1995, he left and returned to his small business on a full-time business. His love for education came knocking one more time in the late 1990’s and he worked for a few years as a teacher at Fuller Normal Charter School in Greenville, SC.

Dr. Brown believed in helping his community and combining the preservation of history with the desire to make a better way for future generations. He always did his best to see this come about by being involved in many organizations that held these same desires. His community involvement included being a Mason, a commissioner of the Greenville County Historic Preservation Commission, a member of the Nicholtown Neighborhood Association, a member of the Glenn Rd. Community Club, and he supported the Glenn Road efforts to stop the relocation of Beck Middle School.

He was a member of Antioch Baptist Church in Prosperity, SC where he served as an active and devoted member.

He was predeceased in death by one sister, Laura Brown Greene and four brothers, James Brown, Sanders Brown, Thomas Brown, and Elmuria Brown.

He leaves behind to cherish his memories: His loving wife of 68 years, Willie Mae Brown; two daughters, Dr. Barbara Brown-Floyd (James) and Dr. Grace Brown-Burns (David); three granddaughters, Amanda Burns, Brittanie Floyd, and Cecily Burns; three great-grandsons, Austin Burns, Kayden Ford, and Kamdyn Ford; one sister, Ms. George A. Wise (William Wise – deceased) of East Orange, New Jersey; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Dr. Brown’s smile, bright eyes, humor, generosity, and life lessons will be missed by all those that know and love him.

Achievements, Rewards, and Recognitions

World War II Victory Medal

Army of Occupation Medal Japan

NDEA Fellowship, University of Southern Mississippi, 1973-1975

NEH Seminar Fellowship, Stanford University, Stanford California, 1976

NDEA Fellowship 1972, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 1972

NDEA Fellowship, Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa 1965

NDEA Fellowship, South Carolina State College, Orangeburg, South Carolina, 1960.

Phi Delta Kappa

Who’s Who in American Education

Lifetime Member of Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States

Professional Memberships

South Carolina Education Association

South Carolina Association of Elementary School Principals

South Carolina Association of School Administrators

Nation Education Association

National Association of Elementary School Principals

 Service Information