Kevin Brown

Co- Founder/CEO

Kevin Brown began his career in funeral service in 1991, when he started working at Chapel By The Sea in Fort Bragg, California.  After two years of working in the industry, he knew it was more than a job  it was a calling.  He graduated from San Francisco College of Mortuary Science as a licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer, working in California and Nevada until he relocated to Colorado.  He worked at funeral homes on the Front Range and the Western Slope.  And, while in Glenwood Springs, Kevin was also appointed as Deputy Coroner in Garfield County. 

Kevin and his wife Sheila enjoy traveling and spending time with their children and grandchildren.   As a professional singer, Kevin has won awards, recorded his music  and delighted the community with his wonderful voice. 

Kevin loves people and is passionate about helping them during their time of loss.  For years, his dream was to have his own funeral establishment where families could choose simplicity without compromising dignity.  Where funeral merchandise and services are affordable to everyone, and where customers are treated like family. 
Kevin is proud to offer Western Colorado Brown’s Cremation & Funeral Service Inc . 

Sheila Brown

Co- Founder/President/Pre-Need Counselor

Sheila Brown is a native of Grand Junction.  She began her legal career as a Division Clerk for the 21st Judicial District of Colorado, and served over 20 years. 

Sheila’s ability to inspire, motivate and build confidence in others catapulted her into a successful 30 year marketing career with an international catalog company based in the U.S.   

Friends often praise Sheila for her abilities as a homemaker, interior decorator and candy maker extraordinaire. But, she would say her biggest accomplishment is being a wife and mother, and her greatest joy is being a grandmother.  Her cup overflows. 

Jay Wilson

General Manager

We proudly present Jay Wilson, General Manager of Brown’s.  Jay’s area of responsibility is to oversee everyday operations of the Funeral Home and Service Center, staffing, inventory, and automobiles.  In addition, Jay makes funeral arrangements and is licensed to sell PreNeed insurance.

 Jay was born and raised in Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Economics. During his professional career, he owned and operated his own furniture stores throughout Arizona, worked for large corporations, and later became the Regional Manager of a franchise group overseeing 40 stores in six states. All told, he has managed over 1,000 people and has “semi-retired” twice.

 Married for over twenty years, Jay is the father of two. He enjoys listening to a broad spectrum of music, especially Big Band sounds.  In his leisure time, Jay and his family like seeking out the ghost towns of Colorado and exploring the most remote places of the state.

 Restaurants are no match for Jay. The highlight of his weekend is being in the kitchen.  He searches for recipes from all over the world and turns out delectable ethnic creations for his family.

 Jay is a direct, no-nonsense kind of leader.  He is proud to be an active member of our local community, thrives on networking in social and civic groups, and participation in charitable causes.  We happily welcome Jay to our team.

 

 

 

 

 

Delaney Jean Rose

Administrative Assistant

Delaney Jean Rose joins our team of professionals in our administrative department.

 Delaney’s background in customer service, plus her warm and welcoming smile, gentle spirit and willingness to help, brings the perfect addition to our front desk. 

 Granddaughter of Kevin and Sheila Brown, Delaney is no stranger to their cremation and funeral business. She’s been around the funeral home since it opened, helping on occasion with light office work, organizing, and running errands. Because of her beautiful penmanship, she was honored with the task of hand-writing hundreds of invitations for a holiday event.

 Even though she is stationed at the front desk and is the telephone receptionist,  Delaney considers most of her duties “behind the scenes”.  She prepares obituaries and death notices for the newspaper and funeral home website, and creates memorial folders and register books for the families.  She loves learning about the deceased in order to capture, in writing, a snapshot of their life.

 Having studied Architecture and earning her undergraduate degree in Environmental Science, Delaney is taking a brief hiatus before embarking on her masters curriculum.

 As a native of Grand Junction, Delaney never tires of the beauty and grandeur of Colorado.   She was recently married to Chandon Rose, who is also a Grand Junction native and an Officer with the Grand Junction Police Department. Together the couple enjoys the great outdoors by camping, hiking, boating, fishing and hunting. Delaney’s greatest blessings are received when spending time with her husband, family and friends.

 

Thomas Walton

Assistant Manager / Funeral Director/Embalmer

Brown’s Cremation and Funeral Service is delighted to welcome Thomas Preston Walton, III to our staff.Growing up in Arlington, TX Thomas was very empathetic, often expressed compassion for others and was an exceptionally good listener.  He always knew he wanted to help people.  Attending his grandfather’s funeral became a pivotal time in his life.  Expecting the worst, he remembers how much better he felt after seeing his grandfather’s body in the casket. He watched friends and other family members show the same positive reaction at the viewing.  At the funeral service, he witnessed the caring attentiveness of the professional funeral directors.At age 13, he announced to his mother he wanted to be a funeral director, and had her take him to the local Funeral Home to meet the funeral director there.   He learned exactly what was required and was determined that someday he would go to Mortuary College.Thomas was a good mortuary student and received an award for outstanding attendance.  He graduated from the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service in 2003.  He began his mortuary career in Glenwood Springs, CO where he served as a funeral director and embalmer.  He was also Deputy Coroner of Garfield County.  Helping families through the difficulty of losing a loved one is a passion that fulfills him.  Thomas is an outdoors enthusiast who enjoys hiking, four wheeling, camping and boating.  He especially delights in metal detecting which has yielded many treasures.  He also likes working on old cars.  But, more than anything, Thomas is a devoted family man who enjoys spending time with his wife, Misty, and their son, Caden. 

Doug Thomason

Funeral Director

Douglas Thomason had been helping us nights and weekends, and found the work very rewarding. When asked to become a permanent member of our team, he “came out of retirement” and joined us at Brown’s.

 A Colorado native, Doug grew-up in Denver, relocated to Grand Junction and graduated from Mesa State College with a degree in business management. He was employed as Sales Manager in various types of businesses; Travel, Moving and Storage, and Communications. His extensive background interacting with people of all ages, was the perfect segue to serving our client families.

 Doug’s kindness and ability to motivate people, enables him to help others reach their best potential. A dedicated advocate for the people of the Grand Valley, Doug ran for office and served on the Grand Junction City Council.  Also bringing him a great deal of pleasure and sense of accomplishment, is being called “Coach”. Doug has coached elementary school, middle school and high school youth sports for over 35 years.

 Doug stands out in a crowd for many reasons and at seven feet tall, he is unofficially the tallest person in Grand Junction.

 Doug enjoys four wheeling and camping throughout Colorado.  Husband of Cari, and father of four, with two children at home, he loves being fully involved with his kids and all of their activities.     

Jeanie Hendricks

Funeral Director Emeritus

Jeanie’s career in funeral service has spanned decades. She has proudly served families in Pennsylvania, California, Arizona, Colorado, incorporating invaluable experience in multi-traditions, rituals and cultures. As a graduate of Cypress College of Mortuary Science and licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer, Jeanie is also licensed to sell PreNeed Insurance specific to the Funeral Industry. 

In our ever changing society with increasing popularity of cremation, Jeanie’s forte is educating families in, what often times, is an unfamiliar process. She started and operated Mariposa Gardens, a successful cremation facility in Arizona and was a featured speaker at an annual CANA Convention, “Cremation Association of North America.” 

No two families are the same; each has different wants and needs. Jeanie’s gentle explanations and presentation of options, assures each family is served according to their wishes and unique situation.

David Botruff

Funeral Director, Embalmer, Crematory Manager

David Botruff received his degree in Mortuary Science from Southern Illinois University in 1981.   He has been a skilled and compassionate funeral director, embalmer and cremationist for well over 30 years.

Always ready to serve, David was a multi-year member of the Rock Island County Coroner’s Disaster Response Team in Illinois and also an active member of the Funeral Director’s Association.  

Additionally, David has served in the Lions Club and volunteered with the Salvation Army during the Holiday Season.  He is especially proud of the time he spent working with persons with developmental disabilities at the Grand Junction Regional Center.

Above all, David credits his close-knit family as the key to his success. He is dedicated to his wife of 41 years, 5 wonderful children, 13 amazing grandkids and 2 delightful great-grandchildren.

We are happy to have David at Brown’s Service Center, where he oversees the crematory, embalming facility and refrigerated care unit.

Richard White

Crematory Assistant

Pat Walsh

Pre-Need Counselor

Sophie Girl

Emotional Support

Sophie is a 11 year old Golden Retriever/ Lab mix.  She’s an emotional support dog with an amazing temperament and seems to have a keen sense for those who are grieving.  We have often seen her go to the person who is visibly hurting and lay her head in their lap, and for a few brief moments, take their mind off of their current situation.  She absolutely loves being here at work.   You’ll find her making her way through the funeral home, bringing a smile to all who come in contact with her. It wasn’t really our intention to have her at the funeral home, but she is such a comfort to our entire staff and to the many families we care for.  She has become quite the little celebrity and a fixture here at the funeral home.  We often have people come in and ask for Sophie because they’ve heard about her from others.  We understand that no one cares to enter a funeral home, but unfortunately there comes a time when most of us will be faced with that task of planning a funeral.  Our goal is to make that experience the best it can possibly be, and while you’re here we invite you to get to know our furry family member Sophie.  We know you’ll love her.  We do!

Paxton Cambridge Brown

Comfort Canine

Meet Paxton Cambridge Brown, our newest K-9 staff member. This handsome chap is a Goldendoodle, which is a cross between a Golden Retriever and a Standard Poodle. They are known for their silky fur and to be hypoallergenic.

Despite his young age (born November 8, 2018) he’s instinctively fulfilling his job description as Funeral Home Comfort Dog. His stable temperament and easygoing personality often give way to bouts of pure and joyful “puppy exuberance”. Paxton loves to play.  Large, plush, squeaky toys are his favorites. As he developed his knack for “rapid fire” squeaking, he soon discovered the best time to show off his skill is when Dad is on the phone!

His keen attraction to water was obvious when he tried to swim in his water dish. He loves baths in the big tub and happily dips under water to retrieve his toys. But, the best part of bath-time is cuddling with Mom on the couch as he dries.

Paxton is working with a trainer to learn commands and refine his behaviors. But, his success as a comfort dog is due more to his personality than his training. Emotional support and comfort dogs like Paxton intuitively identify people who are struggling with anxiety and grief. Paxton’s selective breeding, tender eyes, and loving personality make him a perfect addition to Brown’s team of professionals.