Barry Brown

GALESBURG - Barry Brown, 67, of rural Galesburg, died at 11:33 AM, Thursday, January 5, 2012 at his home.  Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM, Monday, January 9 at Watson Funeral Home. Visitation will be held from 3:00-7:00 PM, Sunday, January 8 at the funeral home. Burial will be in Knoxville Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to the Barry Brown Memorial Fund.  Barry was born on July 5, 1944 in Galesburg, the youngest of four children to Keith and Martha (Steele) Brown. He was united in marriage to Martha "Marty" Stone on January 30, 1966 in Abingdon. She survives, as do a son, Patrick (Laura) Brown of Brimfield, IL, a daughter, Heather (Tommy) Eppler of Colorado Springs, CO, three grandchildren, Jacob and Morgan Brown and Ashton Eppler, two sisters, Barb Dryden of Galesburg and Betty (Lee) Marks of Abingdon, a brother, Byron "Sonny" Brown of Galesburg and several nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.  He graduated from Abingdon High School in 1962 and then joined his father in the family farming operation, a passion which he still maintained. He was a DeKalb Seed Salesman and Distributer and had also worked for a number of years for the State of Illinois as a winter maintenance driver. Barry enjoyed all sports but was especially fond of basketball. He was an avid supporter of area high school sports teams, especially those from Knoxville High School. He rallied behind those schools that his nieces and nephews attended and of late was a supporter of the Elmwood Grade School program. He was an avid Illini Sports Fan and enjoyed playing cards, traveling and spending time with his family, which was his pride and joy. His caring pride also extended to his nieces and nephews and their families. Barry also enjoyed going out to various restaurants and socializing about farming, sports and family. A void in our hearts forever, we find comfort in knowing that the rains have arrived timely and the final score is in our favor.