James Nelson "Jim" Brown
Marriages
Esther Louise (Frost) Brown - November 5, 1960
Burial Details
Obituaries
The Daily Sentinel page 4B - February 13, 2020
James N. Brown, 85, of Grand Junction, died Feb. 10, 2020, at
his residence. Funeral Mass 10 a.m., Friday, at St. Joseph’s Catholic
Church.
The Daily Sentinel page 3D - February 16, 2020
Jim died at 11:25 on the
morning of February 10, after
a long battle with fourth stage
kidney failure.
James Nelson Brown was
born to Nelson Thomas Brown
and Alice Mary (Brown)
Brown on November 23, 1934,
in Thermopolis, Wyoming.
Waiting for him at home were his sisters, Reva June and Mary
Alice. He graduated from Hot Springs County High School in 1953.
In July 1957 he enlisted in the Army and served until December of
that year. This was followed by five years of service in the Reserves.
He was a Cold War Warrior.
Jim worked for Shell Oil Company from January 1958 to
December 1976, going to many different locations including
Denver, Los Angeles, New York City, and Houston. In December
1976 Jim went to work for Occidental Petroleum in Grand Junction,
Colorado. With Oxy he spent time in Lima, Peru, and Bogota,
Colombia, before retiring from Oxy in April 1990. He also worked
for Rust Geotech until September of 1996. After retirement Jim
spent many years doing volunteer tax prep through AARP and
VITA.
He enjoyed laughing, fishing, hunting, camping out, skiing,
motorcycles, and golf. He loved doing all of these things best with
family and friends. He also enjoyed reading and was rarely without
a good book in hand.
Jim is survived by his wife; children, Kevin (Tamera), Pam,
and Mary; granddaughters, Kristin and Kasey (Chris); greatgranddaughters, Madison, Amelia, and Clara; sister, Mary Alice;
sisters-in-law, JoAnn and Betty, and numerous nieces and nephews.
He is preceded in death by his parents; sister, Reva June, and
nephews, Bob, Luke, and Tom.
We will miss his great smile and big booming laugh!
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Building Fund of
St. Joseph Catholic Church, 230 N. 3rd Street, Grand Junction, CO
81501 or HopeWest.
Jim wrote the following in January 2017: This is my story: I have
tried to be accurate, but over the years, some details may have
slipped away.
My name is James Nelson Brown. I was born in Thermopolis,
Wyoming, on November 23, 1934. My father was Nelson Thomas
Brown. He was born in Center, Missouri, on August 1, 1896. My
mother was Alice Mary Brown. She was born in Billings, Montana,
on November 9, 1907. Dad owned and operated a Chrysler/Plymouth
garage and repair shop. Mom was a registered nurse and for many
years the Superintendent of Nurses at Hot Springs County Hospital.
Thermopolis was a good place to grow up and most of my
classmates became life-long friends. I graduated from high school
in 1953 and went to Regis College in Denver, Colorado. I received a
degree in business and accounting. I joined the Army Reserve and
took basic training at Fort Leonardwood, Missouri, in July of 1957.
My first job was with Shell Oil Company in Billings, Montana.
It was there that I met a lovely young girl, Esther Louise Frost,
from Muscatine, Iowa, who also worked for Shell. Esther and I were
married on November 5, 1960, in Billings, Montana. I worked 19
years for Shell and 13 years for Occidental Petroleum. During my
working years, we moved over nine different times, including four
years in Lima, Peru, and one year in Bogota, Colombia. Each time
we would move, Esther, with her unique organization skills, would
get the house packed up, the kids loaded, and move us to a new city
and make a home for our family.
During my journey God blessed me with a beautiful wife and
three lovely children, Kevin, Pam, and Mary. As Saint Paul said, “I
have fought a good fight and I have finished my course.”
Kids, should I not be around, take good care of your mother, as
you always have. Give her a lot of love and a lot of space.
Love you all, Dad As the old Irish man said, “May I be in
heaven before the Devil knows I’m gone.”
