Audrey Brown Obituary

Lifelong Southwest Colorado resident Audrey Brown died of cancer Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2014, in Durango. She was 81.

Mrs. Brown was born to Thomas and Daisy (Slade) Hadden on July 4, 1933, in Breen. One of nine children, she spent her youth living between Breen and Silverton.

In 1949, she married Lynn "Brownie" Brown in Aztec. They started a construction company that they ran for many years before they both joined the La Plata County Sheriff's Office. Mr. Brown was a deputy, and she worked in the office.

An accomplished seamstress, Mrs. Brown sewed elaborate royal court outfits for Fiesta Days. She also made wedding dresses for many young brides in the area and enjoyed making quilts for everyone she knew, her family said.

"Her very favorite outdoor pastime was fishing," according to her family. "On every Sunday, you would find her and her family at Lemon Dam or Haviland Lake. She would not miss a day on the lake, even in bad weather."

After Mr. Brown died in 1968, Mrs. Brown went back to school to become a secretary. Shortly after going to work at KIUP-AM, she decided it was not for her, so she went back to school to become a hairdresser.

"That was a vocation that she absolutely adored," according to her family. "She loved doing hair and talking to her clientele. This is what she did for her last job, and she did it well into her 70s."

Mrs. Brown was an avid Denver Broncos and Colorado Rockies fan.

"Heaven help you if you said anything bad about one of her teams," according to her family.

Mrs. Brown was preceded in death by her husband, Lynn Brown.

She is survived by her children Roy Brown and Patty DeLuzio, both of Durango, and Stan Brown of Amarillo, Texas; brothers Lynne Hadden, of Dallas, Sonny Hadden, of Alma, California; sister Alene Cook of Globe, Arizona; six grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.

A memorial service will be held at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014, at the Grace Church, 1440 Florida Road in Durango.