ÃÛÌÒÉç

Alice Brown

Mother of Frank H. Brown ’74, Bill Brown ’75, Mike Brown ’81, Barbara Henning ’82, and Ann Brown, ’83

Alice Brown, passed away on Sunday, June 23, 2024, at the age of 93 in the St Cloud Hospital. She was born on October 11, 1930, in Park Rapids, Minnesota to parents Cecelia (Ward) and Joseph Driscoll.

Alice grew up in a log home on the shores of Long Lake. During this period, Alice and her siblings helped work at the family business, Driscoll’s Cafe, in downtown Park Rapids, by cooking, cleaning, and serving food. As for their diet, her family made do primarily through fishing, hunting, and gardening. Throughout the hot summers and harsh winters living in northern Minnesota, Alice and her family enjoyed themselves by going skiing, horseback riding, camping, and swimming.

Alice graduated from St Francis High School in Little Falls in 1948, then attended The College of St Catherine in St Paul, where she graduated with her BA in Nursing in 1952. In 1951, while a student at St Catherine’s, she was crowned the Park Rapids Winter Snow Queen and represented her hometown in the St Paul Winter Carnival. She lived and worked in Minneapolis at St Mary’s Hospital at the University of Minnesota, where she proudly helped to establish the first children’s inpatient psychiatric unit in the state at the University of Minnesota.

Alice met her future husband, Frank T. Brown, during the time she was a nursing student. Five years later, they became engaged and then married at St Frances Cabrini Church in Minneapolis in 1955. They were together for 67 years until Frank’s death. In 1963, the two decided to settle in St. Cloud, halfway between their hometowns of Park Rapids and Madison Lake.

Alice and Frank were blessed with seven children born within the span of 9-years. They were active community members, and highly involved in the pro-life movement. Alice founded Birthright of MN in 1971, later known as Birthline and now Elevate. In 1983, she also founded New Beginnings, a home for unwed mothers that served clients for over 30 years. In their own home, Alice and Frank took in foster babies and children, housed single pregnant women, and were active in MCCL (MN Citizens Concerned for Life), as well as numerous other pro-life organizations. Traveling to Washington, DC and around the nation to speak at prolife conventions, Alice was well known as a leader in the movement. Alice’s Catholic faith was central to her life, demonstrated by her and Frank’s lifelong membership in the Holy Spirit Church and their emphasis on providing Catholic education through college for all seven of their children.

During the summers, the family camped on the Driscoll family property at Boulder Lake, which expanded to include an island cabin and the later building of a cabin on the mainland. It was here that Alice spent time partaking in activities such as fishing, gardening, and raspberry picking with children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Thanks to Alice’s influence, the family also enjoyed downhill skiing in the winter. Alice taught Frank to ski at Shingobee Hills during the early ’50s, and the two of them taught all seven of their children to ski. Beginning with small ski areas throughout the upper Midwest, most notably Powder Ridge in Kimball, MN, they later traveled to the mountains of Montana and Colorado.

This love of skiing was eventually passed down to the grandchildren, through annual family gatherings at Whitecap Mountains Ski Resort in Michigan. During their retirement years, Frank and Alice traveled the country by way of ski resorts, their favorite being Alta in Utah.

From 2016 to 2023, Alice and Frank were happy to call Chateau Waters their home, and for the final year of her life, Alice lived with and was cared for by her daughter Ann. Alice is survived by seven children: Frank (Laurie) MD of Ogden, Utah, Bill (Lynn) of Wayzata, Mary Brown MD (John Lampert) of Minneapolis, Maureen Spanier of St. Cloud, Michael of Eden Prairie, Barb (Tom) Henning of Sheboygan, WI and Ann Brown (Manuel Pastor) of St. Cloud. In addition, she is survived by 19 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren with another on the way, one sister, Marge Axelson (Larry), and one brother, Tom Driscoll (Bridie), as well as many nieces and nephews.

Alice was preceded in death by her dear husband Frank, parents, and siblings Ward, Don, Chuck, and Marianne Kidd Van Maren.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 29, 2024, at Holy Spirit Church in St Cloud. Reverend Thomas Knoblach will officiate. Burial will take place at a later date.

Visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. on Friday, June 28 at the Daniel Funeral Home in St. Cloud and one hour before the funeral Mass on Saturday at Holy Spirit Church. Parish prayers will be held at 4:00 p.m. on Friday at the funeral home.

A special thank you to the staff of Chateau Waters, Centra Care Home Care Services, and Home Instead for all the care given to Alice.