Glenn 'Stubby' Brown

Heartbroken By: Randy Brown Glenn Irving Brown Jr. (or Stubby Brown for those who really knew him), passed away on November 27th, 2013 in a Hospice bed at Monadnock Community Hospital. Born June 27th, 1938, he is survived by his son, Randy Irving Brown of Peterborough, his partner of 17 years Bette Jane Ascani from Jaffrey, his brother Gary Brown of Dublin and numerous extended family members and friends. Many local people will remember him for his 50 plus years of work in excavation/construction where he made many close friends and dedicated working relationships. He moved to Peterborough from Meredith, NH in 1950 with his parents Ruth Amelia Moses (Brown), Glenn Irving Brown Sr. and his brother Gary where he graduated from Peterborough High School with the class of 1957. Glenn lived a very colorful life and never took things too seriously unless it involved work and his family. He was not a man to betray or lie to (the consequences were not pleasant) and he honored true friendship over anything else. A perfect example was his long standing friendship he had with Albert Blanchette of Hancock. After a somewhat violent meeting in Jr. High School, they became best of friends until the day Albert died in 2008. That was one of the darkest days for Glenn and he never fully recovered from the loss. We can all take comfort now in knowing that he and Albert are together once again making heaven an even better place to be! Another dedicated friend was Duke Davis of Peterborough. He had some of the greatest adventures with Duke and always had the utmost respect for him. There was never an unfavorable word spoken about Duke and even though the stories of their past are not for the faint of heart, you can certainly ask the right people for excerpts and those who knew either of them will confirm how legendary they were. His work took him all over the Monadnock area. Many people will remember him as the guy that came to save them from a failing septic system or just a routine pumping out. So many of those people have become great acquaintances and even close friends over the years. The list is far too long to mention everyone but you know who you are and his family knows how important they were to him. Now for the times to remember that make his personality come to life outside of the third person…. In the later years of his life, he enjoyed puttering around his garage, yard sales, going to sporting events with Bette for her grandchildren Justin and Ross (who always made him smile), hanging out in the garage with Butch Tenney, Robin Reynolds, Joe Bellofato and whoever came along that day for a cold beer including me. Dad always looked forward to the fall when all of his hunting buddies, Judd, Dan, Joey, Bill, Eddie, and Jeremy came over to hunt the property. He was not a hunter but enjoyed getting fresh venison or turkey when they had it. He made sure there was a warm spot by the woodstove for each of them to tell stories of the wildlife they saw and make them feel at home. Aside from holding court in his garage, he enjoyed a good party in his back yard during the summer season. It was a time to see his extended family. Familiar faces at these events included Jim and Theresa Ascani and their children Justin and Ross. Theresa and Jim were always welcome attendees knowing that he could joke with Theresa and admired Jim for his hard work and determination. Cindy Ascani would make the trek down from Maine and make everyone feel like they were part of the family. He especially enjoyed talking with Justin and Ross. He loved hearing their stories of growing up to be fine men. Three of Bette’s other grandchildren (Mandy, Becky, and Brianna) often came as well. He liked watching Mandy’s daughter Evah playing in the kiddy pool and running around the yard. He was fortunate to get to meet Brianna’s new daughter Cadence before his illness got too severe. Shirley and Wayne Elliot would often come by. Shirley is the sister to Albert and she and Glenn always had some playful banter to entertain the crowd. When Shirley and he would finish their initial entertainment, he and Wayne would often discuss what the excavator was going to be used for next. There was always a project to be done! No matter who showed up at the famous backyard feasts, they were welcome with open arms and he either liked you, or he didn’t. There was no in between. You had to earn his respect. He was also very respectful to my friends who would often come by the house or garage on occasion. My long time best friend Michelle Stahl enjoyed listening to his tales of the older days of Peterborough. As a historian, she found it enjoyable. Though she knew the stories were not always completely true, his version made for more interesting visions of what life behind the scenes in an older Peterborough was like. His other passion was collecting. He loved getting a good deal. There was a time where he and Bette went to yard sales on a regular basis. It was a time that they both enjoyed ,often running into folks they both knew and he never hated beating someone out of a good deal! We have the garage to prove it! Now on a personal note…… I lost my best friend and mentor on November 27th. He never questioned any crazy project I had in my head. He simply supported it. When I told him that I was going to Montana to meet Lance Marshall my future husband and his future son in law, he supported the idea and made sure Lance was welcome when we got home to New Hampshire. In fact he treated Lance like his true son. I remember once when I was very young and still early in grade school, he came to me one night and asked if I was ashamed of him. There was a long pause and he was looking at me for an answer…. The history behind this question was that he and I would wave to one another in the early morning when he was taking the truck out to go to work. I’d see him through the window and make sure that I’d wave to him every day. One morning, I had not made it to the window in time and wasn’t there to wave. He thought, at that moment, I had grown up too much, was pulling away and was ashamed of being his son. How could he think that? He had no idea how far from he was from the truth. After that, I made sure I was at the window every morning. This continued until I moved out and went to college. How could anyone be ashamed of the greatest Dad who ever lived? I am so fortunate to be raised by such a great man. Dad, Stubby, Glenn or whatever named you called him, will be missed greatly and there will never be another man like him. We could all take a lesson on how to live life from him. I hope that each and every person who reads this will understand what a truly exceptional person he was and that he will live on in our hearts and memories forever. A piece of me died on November 27th, 2013 but a greater part of me will go on to make sure that the values of an amazing man will live on to touch the lives of people he cared about and loved. RIP Glenn Irving Brown Jr. http://thetributecenter.com/tributeplayer/default.aspx?webvideoid=11811