Roy and Wilma Brown celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary on March 14. Their children held a little celebration in the multi-purpose room at church, where friends gathered after Sunday evening worship service to enjoy cake and ice cream.
Their oldest son, Boyd, told funny stories about their life. It was a lot like other gatherings for other members who had milestones to celebrate, but there was one big difference. Nearly everyone in the congregation attended, because everyone loves Roy and Wilma Brown. No better testimony could there be than to see that long line of people, waiting their turn to hug Roy and Wilma’s neck and congratulate them.
Roy grew up in the Linary and Big Lick communities of Cumberland County and Wilma grew up in Crab Orchard. They met on a double date. Both were with someone else, but before long, they were together. When Roy was 19 and Wilma 15, they were married at the courthouse by Judge Rubin Powell. The year was 1942.
Celebrating 69 years together
It was at church (Main Street Church of Christ) where I got to know and love them. You would think that they would have slowed down a bit, since I first met them some 15 years ago, but not so you’d notice. Both walk tall with a straight back.
Their early life together
Roy worked in a sawmill, a rock quary and area coal mines as a young man. Eventually, he took a job in the sheet metal department at Crossland Homes, where he stayed for 25 years. Wilma was a stay-at-home mama until Roy got sick in 1974. She took a job at CMC after becoming certified as a nurse technician. In all, she worked 19 years at the hospital, earning numerous Ambassador Care awards for her excellent work with patients.
They struggled financially early in their marriage. While in Ohio, where Roy worked at a defense plant, everything was rationed: food, gas, even shoes. “They gave us tokens to use,” Wilma said. They stayed there long enough to earn the money to buy a house in Linary, returning to Tennessee in 1945. “We paid $900 for the house and 17 acres,” Roy said.
The Browns, like most folks living in rural Tennessee at that time, depended on the garden for much of their food. They raised a big family and a big garden with a lot of potatoes. They canned their food, and raised cows, chickens and pork for their meat. They did without a lot of the luxuries people take for granted today, like electricity and running water. But their family was strong and healthy. “God has blessed us so much and we are so thankful,” Wilma said. “We have many special friends and love them all very much.”
Roy still enjoys working around the farm and in the garden and occasionally hunts and fishes. Wilma, like so many country wives of yesteryear, quilts and sews. She made all the clothes for her three daughters, when they were growing up. The parents of five children, the Browns know what it is to struggle. They set up housekeeping in a two-room house where coal oil lamps provided the light and they carried their water from the spring. When they first set up housekeeping, they bought an ironing board and a bed from a friend, Roy’s father made their table and cabinet, and they bought a few pieces of furniture at Ideal Furniture.
I have known their daughter Linda Hassler for several years. She was the dietician at the CMC Wellness Center when I was going through Cardiac Rebab and she was my counselor. Her influence for staying in shape has had an effect on her parents. They both go to the Wellness Center three days a week at 5 a.m. Some habits are hard to break, like getting up with the chickens.
On the same page
“Mom and Dad were always on the same page when it came to parenting,” Linda said.” “They believed in God, hard work and honesty and they loved us all very much. We were so blessed to have them as parents, so blessed to grow up in a Christian home.”
Roy and Wilma Brown with son Boyd
The Browns have two sons: Boyd (Naomi) and Jerry (Gracie); three daughters: Charlotte (Dale) Hennessee; Linda (David) Hassler; and Judy (Wayne) Smith. They have 12 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren with one on the way, due in June. The Brown’s children were born in 1943, ’47, ’50, ’55 and ’57.
Roy and Wilma have lived a wonderful life and they continue to share much of it with others. They are great friends, great Christian brothers and sisters, and great neighbors. With the help of family, they still raise a big garden and enjoy sharing the produce and canned goods with people up and down York Road where they live.
I consider it a privilege to know them and look forward to helping them celebrate anniversaries to come. They are not making people like the Browns anymore. We better treasure them while they’re here.
