Obituary of Alice Drue Brown

On April 7, 2020, Alice Drue Brown slipped from this life into the next, freed from a year-long battle with cancer. She was 80 years old. Her passing was peaceful and painless. She was surrounded by her family who adored her. She was blessed to follow her beloved husband who passed away just six weeks earlier.

 

Drue was born on May 14, 1939, to William Theodore Berrett and Harriette Ballif Berrett in Menan, Idaho. She was the sixth daughter of eight children. She was an Idaho farm girl through and through and loved growing up in the rural farm land of Rexburg and Menan.

 

After graduating from Rigby High, she attended Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho. There, she was nominated as Homecoming queen, which brought her to work closely with the college fraternity president, a handsome young man named Larry Brown. For him, it was love at first sight and they were married on July 3, 1959, in the Idaho Falls Temple.

 

The greatest joy of her life was being a wife and mother, and she was blessed with seven children in 11 years. Her life with Larry was nothing short of an adventure, and she spent 10 years raising her kids in the beautiful mountains of Anchorage, Alaska. They were tough, lean years, but she created the happiest memories for her children. Their lives were full of music, holiday traditions, hard work, and lots of fun.

 

In 1975, the family left Alaska and, after a short time in Ft. Smith, Arkansas, settled in Atlanta, Georgia, for the next seven years. Those years were packed with the busyness of family life.  With six of her seven children in elementary school, she became heavily involved in the school programs, serving several years in PTA and even took her turn as PTA President.  She was active in her community and helped manage several family-owned businesses, all of this while serving faithfully in her church, blessing the lives of so many as she ministered with kindness and love.

 

In 1983, she and her family moved to Olympia, Washington, where they would reside for the next 35 years. There she worked for the Department of Transportation for many years, as she continued to mother a houseful of teenagers. Over the years, she and Larry had opportunities to serve in several different capacities, taking them away from their home from time to time.

 

In 1987, Larry was given a temporary work assignment in Swaziland. They lived there for the next four years during which time Drue worked as the Executive Assistant to the U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland. She found great fulfillment in this assignment and developed a deep love for the Swazi people. Just as that assignment was to end, she and Larry were asked to give three more years to Africa. Together, they opened the Kenya, Nairobi, mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Those years brought a greater depth to her faith in Jesus Christ as she tirelessly worked with new missionaries and new members, teaching them the gospel and immersing herself in the African culture. Later, she and Larry served as directors of the Independence, Missouri Visitors Center, and then spent three years serving in the Seattle Temple Presidency.

 

Drue found great happiness in being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Her natural gifts of kindness and compassion influenced countless lives in her selfless service. Whether it was across the world or right here at home, her life exemplified the God she loved.

 

Alice Drue Brown is survived by her seven children, Larry (Digger) Brown, Kathleen Woolf, Brenda Labit, Julie Backus, Angela Paynter, Alicia Neeley, and Randall Brown; 27 grandchildren; 15 great grandchildren; siblings, Emma Rae Gilbert of Provo, Utah, Gae (Denton) Birch of  Titusville, Florida, Nancy (Jack) Shawcroft) of El Cajon, California, and Ted (Lu) Berrett of Idaho Falls, Idaho; and numerous nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her parents, William T. and Harriette Ballif  Berrett; siblings, Louise (Harold) Hymas, Virgene (David) Hirschi), and Kathryn (Gene) Barnes; and brother-in-law, Byron Gilbert.

 

No funeral arrangements have been made at this time. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to the American Cancer Society or to a missionary fund of your choice.

 

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