Howard Brown

Howard J. Brown
Born	March 1909 Buena, Washington
Died	May 27 1988
NSA member	Alaska 1957 - 1965
ABM	Alaska 1965 - 1982
Spouse(s)	Lea
Children	Sandra, Boyer
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Howard J. Brown (March 1909 – May 27, 1988) was an Alaskan Bahá'í who served as a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska and as a North American Auxiliary Board Member.

Life

Howard was born in Buena, Washington, near Yakima Indian Reservation in 1909. He joined the U.S. Marine Corps before finishing high school. He later secured an apprenticeship as a baker in Washington. In the mid-1930's he moved to Southeast Alaska where he worked as a logger, seaman, and commercial fisherman.

In the 1940's he was working in a hard rock gold mine which he was part-owner of in the Talkeetna Mountains, and it was during this time he heard of the Faith by listening to a Bahá'í radio program broadcast on KFQD, the Anchorage radio station. After he and his family, his wife Lea and children Sandra and Boyer, moved to Anchorage his wife organized a meeting with the Anchorage Bahá'í community.

The Browns were the first family in Alaska to collectively become Bahá'ís, with Howard, his wife Lea and his children Sandra and Boyer declaring in 1947. Howard and Lea were both elected as members of the Anchorage Recording District Local Spiritual Assembly, the second Local Assembly in Alaska, when it was established in 1948. Howard was a member of the Assembly when it was incorporated in 1955.

Howard received the following letter of encouragement from the Holy Land in 1954:

"Your letter of December 15th has been received by the beloved Guardian; and he has instructed me to answer you on his behalf.

He is happy to know that you are engaged in the service of the Faith, and will pray that you may be strenghthened to perform befittingly your part, and may be instrumental in guiding others to this great Cause. He urges you to teach all you can, both in Anchorage, and, if possible, in surrounding towns. As you know, Alaska is to establish its own National Spiritual Assembly during the World Crusade; and the first step is the formation of a sufficient number of Local Spiritual Assemblies.

In his visits to the Holy Shrines, he will remember all the members of your family. He hopes your two dear children will become pure and noble examples of the Bahá’í life, and worthy instruments for the service of the Cause. He will also remember in his supplications all the dear friends in that land. With warm Bahá’í greetings, R. Rabbani

[From the Guardian:]

May the Almighty bless, guide and sustain you, and enable you to promote the vital interest of His Faith. Your true brother,

Shoghi"

When an Alaskan National Spiritual Assembly was established in 1957 Howard was elected as a member and the inaugural vice-chairman. Howard participated in the establishment of the Universal House of Justice in the Holy Land in 1963 along with the other members of the Alaskan Assembly, and cast the first ballot, making him the first person to vote for the Universal House of Justice.

In 1959 Howard and his family returned to their mine near the Matanuska Valley and he was working as a baker on the Alaska Ferry System. In 1960 when the Local Spiritual Assembly of Matanuska Valley was established, Howard was elected to the body. In 1961 he and his family pioneered to Wrangell. They moved to Petersburg in 1963, as the community was ready to elect a Local Spiritual Assembly, but had no Bahá'ís who had previously served on an Assembly to guide the fledgling body. They moved from Petersburg to Haines.

In 1965 Howard was appointed as an Auxiliary Board Member for Alaska by Zikrullah Khadem along with Ted Anderson, with Howard being allocated the responsibility of Alaska, Washington, Idaho and Oregon, and the two spoke about the Nine Year Plan at a Conference in Petersburg that year. In August 1965 he taught at the first Tanana Valley Bahá'í Summer Institute in Fairbanks and in October 1966 he gave a talk at the first Kenai Seminar. In May 1966 he attended the Conference of the Hands of the Cause in the Western Hemisphere in West Englewood along with fourteen other Auxiliary Board Members, and in July he spoke at the ninth Yukon Bahá'í conference.

In 1967 Howard taught at the annual Juneau Bahá'í Summer School attended by 50 Bahá'ís and by 1970 he was a member of the Juneau Summer School Faculty.

Howard retired from the Auxiliary Board in 1982 due to health issues. He passed away six years later and was buried in Pioneer Cemetery, Palmer, Alaska. The National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska sent the following message to the World Centre:

"Dearly-loved Howard Brown passed to the Abha Kingdom today after an extended illness. His many friends remembered him this evening in prayer at our National Convention. Counsellor King and a member of the National Assembly recalled his devoted and loving service to Alaska as a homefront pioneer, member of the National Spiritual Assembly, and member of the Auxiliary Board. He served on this National Assembly from its formation in 1957 until his appointment as the first Auxiliary Board member from Alaska in 1965."

The Universal House of Justice sent the following message to the Alaskan National Assembly:

"We are profoundly distressed to learn of the passing of Howard Brown, whose distinguished services to the Cause over many years as a member of the National Spiritual Assembly and of the Auxiliary Board are unforgettable. Through his kindness, dignity and total consecration to the promotion of the Cause he has set a noble example to those who come after him in the Alaskan Bahà'i community. We are offering prayers in the Holy Shrines for the progress of his soul. Kindly convey our sympathy to his family and friends."

References

• Baha'i News (1988). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 689, Pg(s) 1. View as PDF.8