Laurine Brown Obituary (1956 - 2024)

Dr. Laurine Venette Brown, 68, of Normal IL took her last earthly breath August 11, 2024 at 1:30 am after a long journey with endometrial cancer. There will be a Celebration of Life service for Laurine September 7, 2024, 11am CT at Evelyn Chapel on Illinois Wesleyan Univeristy’s campus, followed by time to gather with refreshments at Joslin Atrium. In lieu of flowers, we invite donations to the Ecology Action Center’s Tree Corps program, Save the Children, or other organizations of your choice that align with Laurine’s legacy of giving other humans and the Earth what they need to thrive. Laurine was born March 15, 1956 during a blizzard at Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts to Ruth and Norman Brown. She grew up with 3 wonderful siblings in a military family. Although often described as “shy” or “quiet”, those who knew her well were privy to her depth, creativity, and strong-willed demeanor. Moving often instilled in Laurine an adventurous spirit and a gift for creating a home wherever she landed. Her lifelong passion for protecting the environment took root during a childhood full of camping trips, exploring nature, visiting family farms, and taking in the wonders of our planet. Laurine’s traveling nature continued as an adult. After graduating with a BS in Human Resources and Family Studies from University of Illinois, she completed a year-long dietetic internship at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, launching a lifelong health career. Drawn to helping children, she gained technical skills as a clinical pediatric nutritionist at Boston Children’s Hospital. This work showed her the necessity of preventing child illness by prioritizing a healthy environment. She was inspired to earn her Masters in Public Health at Boston University, which led her to diverse, community-based work all over the United States. From Boston, to South Carolina, to rural Colorado, both Laurine’s attentiveness to detail and ability to think big picture aided her in becoming a meticulous changemaker. Eventually, Laurine’s skills and passion led her overseas to live and work in Southeast Asia. She lived in Bangladesh and Thailand, collaborating with locals and organizations such as Save the Children, Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, Helen Keller International, and UNICEF. Her dedication for bettering people’s lives, and the planet’s health, flourished as she worked across fields of public health, environmental health, and participatory community development. She earned a PhD in Nutrition from Tufts University for her field research on maternal-child health in Bangladesh. She became deeply humbled by the remarkable resilience of the marginalized people she felt privileged to work with. This fueled her hope for positive change in this messy but marvelous world. The last several decades of her life, Laurine settled in the Midwest to raise her beloved child, Cheylane Rose, surrounded by a nest of supportive family and friends. Motherhood brought immeasurable joys packed with love, play, pets, and chaos. Although in this new phase Laurine was putting down roots, she and Cheylane embarked on plenty of travel adventures to experience the world’s wonders together. While settled in Normal, Laurine taught public and environmental health at Illinois Wesleyan University for 20 years, bringing her expertise and global field experience into teaching. She survived breast cancer in her early 40s, which reinvigorated her environmental activism and commitment to public health prevention efforts. Laurine touched the lives of many students and colleagues with her hard work, unique perspective, and kindness. She offered imaginative activities, fieldtrips, and campus events to integrate into the community and think beyond the classroom. The deep care she brought to her role meant she was equally willing to spend extra hours going above and beyond on a project as she was willing to sit and talk with students seeking guidance or a listening ear. Upon her retirement, a tree was planted to honor Laurine’s tireless advocacy for campus sustainability. Laurine walked through life with a gentle strength and steely tread, her eyes resolutely on the horizon. Underneath her quiet, humble nature was exceptional courage and determination. She loved others steadily, relentlessly, believing that we could be the best versions of ourselves and supporting us in doing so. Through her creativity and resourcefulness, she made old things new and gifted them to her loved ones, always including little notes that let us know she saw and appreciated us. Her yearly, beautifully-written Christmas letter was always mailed out to friends and family, near and far, her thoughtful reflections a consistent reminder that her connections were cherished across time and distance. She persevered through all of her life’s challenges the same way, from single motherhood, to building a backyard patio, to cancer diagnoses: one courageous step, brick, and day at a time. Laurine was preceded in death by her wonderful mother and father, Ruth and Norman Brown. She leaves a loving family of survivors including her daughter Cheylane Brown, three siblings Tannia Shewman, Blaine (Susan) Brown, Clinton (Debbie) Brown, beloved nieces and nephews, extended family, and many dear friends from across her long, rich life. She will be dearly missed. May the best of her live on in all of us.