Darlene Brown

BROWN – Darlene (Dar) Joy Brown, age 85, of Cutlerville, MI, passed away on August 17, 2020. She went to sleep peacefully in the arms of Jesus, while her family was gathered near her bedside, with her daughter holding her hand.

Darlene was born in Gaylord, MI on May 16, 1935, the oldest of 9 children. During her younger years she lived in various southern states and California, before settling down in Grand Rapids, MI in 1956. She was preceded in death by the love of her life Jerry D. Brown, her parents John M. and Theo V. Duffield, her daughter Ginger Weiner, her granddaughter Lindsay Wyatt, her sons-in-law Paul VanDrunen and Fred Weiner, her brothers Don Duffield and Grant Lockhart, and her sisters Gloria Thomas and Kathy Baggett.

Darlene is survived by her daughter Sandi VanDrunen of Cutlerville, MI; her sons, David (Sang) Wyatt of Naples, FL, Marshall (Toni) Wyatt of Ashfork, AZ; step-sons, Jerry (Nan) Brown of Greenville, MI, and Tom Brown of Wyoming, MI; brothers, Ken (Jennifer) Duffield of Texas, Dennis (Janet) Duffield of Caledonia, MI, John M. (Patty) Duffield of Romulus, MI; sister, Bonnie (Bruce) Wagner of Texas; sister-in-law, Maxine (Bill) Taylor of Gun Lake, MI; 15 grandchildren; 32 great grandchildren; 15 great, great grandchildren; 1 great, great, great granddaughter; many nieces, nephews, cousins, her biggest fan and cherished friend, Bob LaKenta along with many other friends that she considered as nothing less than family.

Dar loved her family dearly and always enjoyed family gatherings. She especially enjoyed visiting with her grandchildren. This rang true beginning with the first grandbaby in 1968, all the way through her great, great, great grandbaby’s arrival in 2019. She was incredibly proud and amazed to have lived to become the matriarch of 6 generations. One of her favorite hobbies was Crotchet. If there was a new grandbaby on the way, you could bet that she would set all current afghans, tablecloths and doily gift making for the rest of the family, aside. Without fail, she would have that baby blanket ready before he or she arrived. By 2013, her painful hands had forced her to give up that tradition that her family loved so much. However, her determination, immense love and strong will led her to create what would be the final grandbaby blanket for great, great grandson Carter, in 2015. A couple of Darlene’s other hobbies included her membership in several organizations in West Michigan over the years, including the West Michigan Women’s Bowling League for more than 20 years and the West Michigan Bluegrass Music Association. She was a DJ for 10 years on the local station that is now known as WBYW. She graced the airwaves with her special blend of old country music, country gospel and bluegrass gospel. Dar had a huge following and met many new friends through the music she was so passionate about. Darlene was strong in her faith and she absolutely adored her church family. She had not been able to attend services in person the past couple of years due to failing health, which disappointed her greatly. She was so thankful that she could continue to attend services each week by way of television and she felt beyond blessed by the daily prayers and unwavering support offered by her brothers and sisters in Christ.

Services will be held on Friday, August 28th, 2020, at 3PM at Grand Rapids Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church, 100 Sheldon Boulevard SE, Grand Rapids. Officiating will be Pastor Cory Herthel and Rich Reinstra. A livestream of the memorial service will be available. The livestream details will be provided once available. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to “Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church – New Building Fund”.  To share a photo, memory and sign the family's online guestbook please visit www.stegengafuneralchapel.com.