Obituary

Martin Brown 

Obituary published on Legacy.com by Ackley-Mills Funeral Home - Remsen on May 5, 2023.

Publish in a newspaper

Martin Allen Brown, 104, died quietly, Friday, April 21, 2023 at his home in Barneveld, NY with family by his side. Martin was born September 9, 1918 in Watertown, NY to Alice Mabel Allen Brown and Henry Martin Brown, calling Utica home from age eight onwards. The last survivor of four athletic brothers -David, Ted, and Richard - he attended John F. Hughes elementary school in Utica and Northwood School in Lake Placid NY, where he developed a lifelong passion for Nordic and alpine skiing. At Williams College, he was Captain of the ski team and was soon followed in that position by his brothers David and Richard. With the advent of WWII, all four brothers enlisted, with Martin joining the newly formed 10th Mountain Division for which he was an instructor at Camp Hale, CO. He missed shipping out with his regiment while recovering from surgery, but frequently recalled the exploits and mourned the loss of his comrades in the Po Valley. His brothers David and Ted were on separate ships during the Battle of Leyte Gulf when Ted was killed during a kamikaze attack on the Belleau Wood. Martin was enroute to the Pacific when the war ended.

On May 4, 1945, Martin married Nancy Dean Judson, "The love of my life.", in the Unitarian Church in Barneveld, NY. They lived in Utica and Barneveld, raising two children. Martin joined his father in operating the Sauquoit Valley Dairy and subsequently worked as an insurance agent for NY Life. He was a lifelong progressive, passionately committed to ideals of fairness and the need for people and their institutions to work for the benefit of all. He was a founding member of the Citizens Association of Greater Utica, member of Utica Rotary, and went to Mexico with Nancy as part of the International Ambassador Project to promote understanding with other cultures. Together, the Browns helped lead a successful community effort to block development of a large land fill in an environmentally sensitive area of South Trenton, NY and established a conservation easement that was the inspiration for the Trenton Greenbelt trail system.

After Nancy's death in 1986, Martin traveled extensively, continued skiing until he was 94, won a NASTAR slalom race at age 85, played tennis until age 96, and engaged family, friends and neighbors in spirited discussions on politics, history, and the environment. The depth and breadth of his memory and grasp of current events at the age of 104 amazed and delighted all who knew him.

He leaves behind two sons, Martin Judson Brown (Michelle Nugent) and Sheldon T. Brown (Kathryn Weld); three grandchildren: Nathaniel, William, and Matthew Brown; as well as many nieces, nephews and close friends who have cherished their time with him.

A celebration of Martin's life will be held June 10, 2023 at the Unitarian Church, 100 Park Ave, Barneveld, NY at 10 AM. Funeral arrangements are provided by Ackley-Mills Funeral Home, Remsen, NY and remembrances can be posted at . Memorial contributions in Martin's name may be made to Tug Hill Tomorrow Land Trust () and the Unitarian Church of Barneveld ().

To plant Memorial Trees in memory of Martin A. Brown, please click here to visit our Sympathy Store.