Plan for the Future
Ronald Robert Brown, age 53 of Florham Park, NJ, passed away peacefully on Friday, February 23, 2018. His best friend, partner and loving wife of nearly 25 years, Tracy Ann Brown (Cox), was by his side. Ron fought colon cancer courageously for over 2 and a half years while still living life to the fullest. He was able to continue skiing, cycling and traveling with Tracy until a couple months before his death. His strength, spirit and positive attitude were an inspiration to all who knew him, and he will be greatly missed.
Ron grew up in Fairfield, CT and obtained his BS degree in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University in 1987. He was an active member of the Phi Sigma Kappa Fraternity. Ron also earned his MSEE from Stanford University in 1988. Ron started his career as an Engineer at Bellcore, where he met Tracy. He transitioned his career into education and worked at NJ Institute of Technology as a math professor.
Ron was an avid athlete his entire life enjoying skiing, cycling, tennis and running. He competed in numerous triathlons, one half marathon and one full marathon. He was an active member of the Morris Area Freewheelers bicycling club. He and his wife cycled the beautiful country roads of Northern New Jersey and other parts of the US, as well as several European bike trips. They bought their ski house in Stratton, VT in 2005 where Ron typically skied over 40 days a season. He shared his love of skiing with family and friends teaching many of the children of his friends to ski.
Ron and Tracy loved to travel and visited all 50 of the US states together, completing their “state quest” this past November by attending the Oklahoma vs TCU football game with friends from Dallas and NJ. He was a huge football fan and was happy for his wife that her Eagles finally won the Super Bowl, and being a Jets fan, he accepted he would never see the day that they won the big game again. One of his biggest loves was Penn State football. Ron and Tracy were able to see them in numerous games at Happy Valley and during their state quest. They also went to numerous Bowl Games and saw the Nittany Lions win a thriller at the Big 10 Championship game last year. His favorite Penn State ball cap is now with him in heaven.
He is preceded in death by his father, Robert Irving Brown, and his oldest brother, Gary Roger Brown. In addition to Tracy, he is survived by his mother, Priscilla Esther Frazee, of West Windsor, NJ, sister, Constance Lee Lukowski (Robert) of Lacey Township, NJ, Kenneth Irving Brown (MaryLee) of Mount Pleasant, SC, and Douglas Scott Brown (Rosina) of San Diego, CA. He was the best uncle of Angela Brown, Brian Brown, Robert Lukowski (Kerry), Amy Lukowski, Jason Brown (Jamie), Prescott Brown (Kerri), AshleyAnne Brown, and Analis Brown, and recently became the great uncle of Kane Robert Lukowski.
Please join us for a celebration of Ron’s life on March 10, 2018, between 11am to 1pm at Wm. A. Bradley & Son Funeral Home located at 345 Main Street, Chatham, NJ. Words of Remembrance will begin at 1pm. Lunch immediately following, with details forthcoming.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Nature Conservancy (https://www.nature.org). Ron loved the outdoors and believed that the environment needs to be protected.