This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Brown, Kitchens, Watkins, Laudenberger, Bailey, VanPelt, Bobo, O'Brien, Bland Classification: Obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/3FC.2ACI/2333 Message Board Post: Friday, June 20, 2003 Mitcheal O. Brown, 57 Mitcheal O’Neal Brown, 57, of North Hudson, and formerly of Batesville, Ark., died at his home, Tuesday, June 10, after a short illness. He was born Jan. 9, 1946, in Batesville, the son of Crawford “Pete” Brown and Geneva Kitchens, and graduated from Miller High School in Batesville, where he was given the Citizenship Award. For two years he attended Arkansas Agricultural Mechanical and Normal College in Pine Bluff. He transferred to Arkansas College in Batesville, where he served as vice president of the student government and received a bachelor’s degree in biology in 1967. He was the first African-American to graduate from Arkansas College. He also earned a master’s degree in education at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo. In 1964 he was married to Lois Matilda Watkins. For several years he was employed as a school teacher and guidance counselor in Boonville and New Haven, Mo. In 1970 he was awarded the Outstanding Young Educator’s Award and was placed in the U.S. Jaycees’ publication of Outstanding Young Men of America. Leaving the teaching profession, he took the post of executive director for the Job Center in Columbia, Mo., and wrote funding proposals and served on the Governor’s Commission on Social Services. He also served on the board of directors and implemented a job training program for ex-offenders making parole or securing unrestricted release from correctional facilities. In Jefferson City, Mo., on Nov. 1, 1974, he was married to Charlene Laudenberger. In 1974 he served on the board of directors of Columbia Adult Basic Education advisory committee and the local area Manpower Planning board. He also was a member of several other committees concerned with business, mental health and youth issues. Another career change came when he took employment with the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Corp. (3M). In his work he designed, wrote and facilitated transition workshops for field locations. He also introduced the new performance appraisal system and salary increase guideline system to 10 countries. He was instrumental in surveys on perceptions of African-American employees and global job assessments. He served as human resource manager and received a lifetime certification. He retired in June 2002. He was a strong supporter of the Negro Baseball League, the Hudson Wrestling Club, Kansas Speedway, Arkansas College and was a board member of Family Means in Stillwater. He was an avid golfer, a member of the Hudson Country Club and a supporter of the Phipps Center For the Arts Endowment Foundation. Another interest was attending NASCAR races throughout the U.S. Other enjoyments included fishing, yard work and gardening. He is survived by his wife, Charlene; three children, Celeste (Steve) Brown of St. Louis, Mo., Kelly (Lora) Brown of Columbia, Mo., and Geneva Michelle (Jeff) Bailey of Tulsa, Okla.; three grandchildren, Alexander O’Neal Brown, Christopher Aaron Brown and Spenser Maclaine Bailey; four siblings, George Brown and Wrenetta Brown, both of Batesville, Gary (Juanita) Brown of Chicago and LeWanda VanPelt of Birmingham, Ala.; also surviving are six other siblings, Oscar, Steve, Danny, Dexter, Sarah and Shenita Bobo, all of Benton Harbor, Mich. Preceding him in death were his grandparents and his parents. A celebration of his life was at 11 a.m. Friday, June 13, at the O’Connell Family Funeral Home in Hudson, with Chris O’Brien as presider. Burial will be in Ruddell Hill Cemetery in Batesville. Another service was at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 15, at the Friendship Baptist Church in Batesville with the Rev. L. Bland officiating. Visitation was from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the Willis Hayes Funeral Home in Batesville, Ark. © 2003 Hudson Star-Observer - Reposted by permission http://www.hudsonstarobserver.com/Main.asp?SectionID=3&SubSectionID=54&ArticleID=7917