A Letter From The Brown Family

David Brown was our son, our brother, and our friend. Fate took him from us on February 1, 2003. Many people who we’ve met have expressed their regrets for David’s death, but we remember how well he lived his life.

In his short life David accomplished more than a normal person could accomplish in three lifetimes. David was a high school athlete, a NCAA college gymnast, pilot, and medical doctor. After that he became a Navy flight surgeon and jet pilot and then an astronaut. Even that wasn't enough for David - he was a talented videographer and videotaped much of the training for his shuttle mission.

David trained for two years for the STS-107 space mission. During Columbia's two weeks in space David and his crewmates oversaw 85 experiments, some of which, amazingly, survived the accident. We got to watch David float in space, work on his experiments, and tell us about his wonderful experiences. David always knew that there were risks, and accepted them. It was an incredible mission, only marred by a bad final act.

We certainly miss David and hold a special place for him in our hearts. Each of us has learned how to cope in our own way. And we certainly appreciate all the thousands of letters of condolence from David's extended network of friends, professional associates, and strangers.

Many of David's friends have encouraged us to do something in his honor. We decided to set up the Captain David Brown Aerospace and Medical Endowment because of David's special memories of medical school. That's where he met one of his closest friends - classmate Gordon Iiams. The endowment will help support promising students who are interested in aerospace medicine.

Whether you are interested in applying, or in making a donation, or just in finding out more about David, we encourage you to find out more about David's life on this website.

Dorothy R. Brown, mother
Douglas R. Brown, brother

Note - David's father, Paul Brown, died in November 2009.