Benjamin Harrison Brown, Jr.

Benjamin Harrison Brown, Jr. 83. of Deptford, New Jersey, passed away on Sunday, October 13, 2024. 

Benjamin was born in Charleston, SC, the city by the sea.  He was the eldest of four children.  The late Tinie Simmons and the late Benjamin H. Brown, Sr. were very proud of their first born, a boy.  He was a very long baby, and the weight was in normal range.  Benjamin liked to be called Ben.  Of course, his mother called him junior also.  He spent quality time with his parental grandmother, and she introduced him to education, by hiring a tutor.  This male educator came to the room in the house, which was used for his daily lessons.  The teacher came with books, pencils, crayons and lined paper.  Ben was excited about the time that he spent learning.  Ben’s youngest brother, the late Elijah Simmons, had the opposite feeling about school.  Ben would take him to school, and he would run back to his home every day.  Geraldine was the big eater in the family.  She started her family very early in her life.  Her oldest child, Evett died from cancer early in life, and her children were motherless.  Geraldine and her younger sister Mary were very instrumental in guiding and giving love and care to the children.  Ben always talked about his youngest sister Mary very fondly.  He often stated that when Mary was very young, he noticed that her shoes were too worn.  He immediately purchased her a new pair of shoes.  With great pride, he rented a convertible car, for his sister, Mary to ride in as the queen for the homecoming football game, of Burke School in Charleston, SC.

Ben recalled his first day of school.  Instead of his entering second grade, as he had hoped, he was placed in first grade, after passing the test.  Today he feels that it was because: the tutor lacked the credentials, as an educator.  Since he was a very tall child, he remembers being placed at the end of the line, in all the grades.  As things changed in the school system, Ben was placed in Rhett School on the west side of Charleston, for the remainder of his elementary education.  If the parents could not supply transportation, the children would have to walk to school.  This was the era of segregation.  Ben always wanted the finer things in life that his mother could not afford.  He found work, as a young boy, around the neighborhood, running errands or anything that the people wanted him to do.  When his father came down from Philadelphia, he took him to the men’s store.  He had Ben fitted him with clothes and shoes that were the perfect size.  The children’s store could not fit him properly.

Ben graduated from Burke High School with several disruptions His mother kept him out of school to help care for his younger siblings.  While attending high school, Ben continued to work.  He often talked about working for The Knights of Columbus, running the bowling alley, and with this position, he was in charge of keeping the help, younger boys, under him.  He also worked in hotels, and people’s homes, as servers.  Ben bought his mother her first telephone.  He remembered the cost of the installation fee, $50.00.  He continued working and enjoyed being self-supported.  He later fell in love and got married.  The union ended in a divorce, perhaps he was too young, and not really committed to the union.

His life really changed when he met a young lady on a blind date.  His good friends insisted that he meet this woman.  When he saw her across the room in this club, as he gazed at her, he said to himself, “This girl will not want me; because she is sooooo pretty!”  self-doubt, but this meeting changed his life and her life.  She was born and raised in Charleston, after college she was living in western Pennsylvania.  Joan was also divorced.  After the phone calls and everyday writing love letters every day, they got married.  The newlyweds lived in Charleston, and even bought a home, but Ben could tell that his wife was dissatisfied.  With the encouragement of his younger-step daughter, Kimberly, they moved to New Jersey.  Living in the north was very challenging for him.  He never complained, and finally got a job working for PIW, shipping and receiving as a clerk.  This position was created by Kim, his younger stepdaughter.  She assured him that her mother would find a position in the Camden County School System, as an educator.  Ben quickly adjusted to the very cold weather.  He found himself walking through a blizzard, while waiting for transportation.  Eventually he conquered living, and of course driving in hazard roads and streets.  With this change in his life, he was the proud stepfather of three siblings, Donna, Kimberly and Michael.  The daughters did not move with the family.  Only Michael, who was the minor child.  He and Joan returned to Charleston every summer, during their vacation.  Sadly, many visits were because of sickness and funerals, for his-in-laws and family members.

Ben and his wife lived close to his job, PIW.  They lived in Moorestown, New Jersey for ten years.  He was disappointed when the shipping and receiving clerk ended, the institution closed.  He was not a happy camper, not working but diligently searching for employment.  Finally, he had the position that he enjoyed as a bus driver for Hertz Cooperation. He stayed with this company until he retired in 2021.  Ben retired at eighty years old.  While working there he enjoyed all his coworkers.  He met many dignitaries, and people that he will always remember that he drove, either picking up a rental car or returning a rental car.  This company honored him with lavish gifts, and awards.  Ben was a dedicated worker, and his uniforms were not done at home.  He had them dry cleaned and his shoes were always spit shined, and his persona was always well groomed and dedicated for the job.

Ben was very proud that his niece, Nicole gradated form Benedict College, in Columbia, SC.  Plus, she attended the same school where his sister, Mary, was on staff as a professor.  Nicole got married, brought a set of twins into the world.  Sadly, she developed cancer but today she is cancer free.  Ben realized that cancer was in his family.  His last bout with prostate cancer, never left his body.  He fought a long fight for about thirty years.  His wife learned that he cooked for himself as a bachelor, but that chore was not brought into the marriage.  He maintained life as a bachelor, with a very charming home, in Charleston.  In those days, many people had bars in their basements, or the den room.  Ben had hobbies like bowling, tennis, bike riding and his famous one was golf.

He always had two jobs.  A full-time worker at PIW, or while working for Hertz.  He finally took his wife’s advice and only worked one job.  His sickness was taking a lot of his strength.  His bout with cancer never left his body.  He did things that he had never done before, like yard work and painting many of the rooms inside the homes.  If a crisis arose, he always conferred with his oldest stepdaughter, Donna, who lived in the area.  They made plans as to how to resolve the problem.  He said this was so important to have this relationship with is step-daughter Donna.  Ben and his wife invested in a Timeshare, bought during the red time, in Florida.  They really enjoyed their vacations at this time.  They saw many places like Florida, Bahamas, Massachusetts, Virginia, Hilton Head in South Carolina. The trip to Palm Springs, California was very eventful; because he was able to meet Joan’s sister and her family.  Ben had a host of nieces and nephews. He and Joan had five-step grandchildren, eight step-greatgrandchildren and one step great-great grandson.  He admitted that all the family members and friends brought him so much joy into his life.  Living in his second home, the state of New Jersey.

Be and Joan were married for forty-six years.

Family and friends are welcome to view Mr. Benjamin Brown on Monday, October 21st, from 9:00AM-10:15AM in the McGuinness Funeral Home-Woodbury Location 34 Hunter Street Woodbury NJ. His Funeral Mass will immediately follow starting at 11:00AM at Christ Episcopal Church on Delaware Street, Woodbury NJ and he will then be interred at Locustwood Cemetery located at 1550 Route 70 W, Cherry Hill NJ.

Benjamin transitioned to death on October 13, 2024.

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