William (Bill) Harrison Brown
William (Bill) Harrison Brown, age 80, died Wednesday, November 30, 2016, at Bob Wilson Memorial Hospital in Ulysses, Kansas. He was born to Harry and Mildred (Gall) Brown on January 29, 1936, in Dodge City, Kansas. He grew up in Ford County with his two brothers, Bob and Gordon. Bill’s father was a lawman. Harry Brown’s name is listed in the Boothill Museum with other notables like Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp. Bill was a school teacher for many years. He loved to tell his students at the beginning of the year, “I spent several years in jail”, which was true since the family of the sheriff lived in the basement of the jail. Bill was preceded in death by his parents and both of his brothers.
Bill attended Fort Hays State where he met his wife to be. Shirley Ann Michaelis had a snowball hit the screen of her dorm room and splatter all over the letter she was writing to her boyfriend back home. Bill’s friends locked him in a phone booth and wouldn’t let him out until he got a date with this beautiful coed. That’s all it took for the two to marry on May 26, 1957.
Bill was employed by the Russell public schools from 1957 through 1971. During that time, he completed his masters in education and was named outstanding educator toward the end of his time in Russell. He represented the state of Kansas at the NEA convention in San Francisco the summer of 1970. He accepted an administrative position for the Ulysses public schools in 1971 retiring as Assistant Superintendent in 1994. Bill and his family were always very active in their church in Russell and Ulysses. Bill served the Ulysses Church of Christ as one of it’s elders for almost three decades. Bill loved woodworking, traveling and vacationing with his family. He was a student his entire life and loved discussing religion. He preached and taught Bible classes his adult life and even spent a month in Russia teaching the English language and doing mission work.
Bill and Shirley have two boys. Jim was born January 19, 1959, and Bob was born September 27, 1961. Jim and his wife Sharon are from Altus, Oklahoma and have four boys. Chris and his wife Kerri and their two girls Kaitlyn and Cara are from Tampa, Florida. Chris is a member of the United States Air Force. Jeff and his wife Sara are from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Daniel and Caleb are from Altus, Oklahoma. Bob and Jana are from Lubbock, Texas and have five children: Ryan Shelburne and his wife Michelle and baby girl Lindsey. Logan Shelburne, Taylor Brown and his wife Chelsey, daughter Alivia and baby boy Hudson, Michaela Brown and Paden Shelburne. All of Bob and Jana’s children are from Lubbock, Texas.
Funeral service will be Saturday, December 3, 2016, at 2:00 PM at the Church of Christ in Ulysses with Minister Warren Baldwin officiating. Interment will follow at Ulysses Cemetery. Friends may call on Friday, December 2, 2016, from 5:00 PM until 7:00 PM, with family present, at Garnand Funeral Home in Ulysses. Memorial contributions may be given to the Leadership Training for Christ (LTC) in care of Garnand Funeral Home, 405 W. Grant Ave, Ulysses, KS 67880.
