Obituary: Stan Brown
By Leon Kok
A MENSCH WHO LEFT ENORMOUS FOOTPRINTS
Stanley Loudon Brown passed away in Tauranga, New Zealand, on Sunday December 7 2019 following a visit to SA to meet with close family and friends and to arrange for the publication of his excellent book Bowls, The Pathway to Success and Excellence.
Born in Krugersdorp in 1940, he grew up in Cullinan, was an outstanding sportsman, matriculated at PBHS in 1958, went on to become a formidable educator and sports administrator, was a coach of international note, and would have celebrated his 80th birthday on July 18 this year. His passing came on very suddenly, the cause an undetected abdominal cancer.
In mid-November he was entertained to lunch with family in Durban, complained of considerable discomfort, let it pass, and then flew to Johannesburg to meet with his close and elderly friend, Syd Adler. Two days later he was booked into the Sandton MediClinic for urgent attention and underwent major surgical procedure.
On his discharge, Stan returned to Syd’s home for a day or two but was extremely frail. “At that point I believe that the situation was considerably worse than he had made out to be, and I was astounded by how courageously he dealt with it”, said Syd. “The friendship between our two families went back about 100 years; Stan was virtually the brother I would like to have had; and I was intensely grieved by his suffering”.
Stan’s doctors felt it advisable that he be sent home at the very soonest to be with his wife Valerie (Val); he flew from Johannesburg to Sydney, and then on to Auckland and Tauranga. Again hospitalized, his condition deteriorated significantly thereafter.
Tauranga is a stunning port city on the NZ North Island East Coast and Stan and Val had been exceptionally happy in retirement there. Known for its blue skies, warm climate, beautiful waterfront, golden beaches, lush parks and relaxed lifestyle, it’s considered one of the best places to live in NZ.
Stan is survived by Val, his former wife Helen Ferguson, two boys Andrew and James (ex Maritzburg College) who both excelled at hockey and cricket, and two girls Janet and Margot (ex-Pietermaritzburg Girls High). All graduated from University.
RANDFONTEIN
The eldest of the three Brown boys, Stan’s siblings were Wilf and Thomas (Tom) who matriculated from the School in 1960 and 1962 respectively. All boarded in School House and Tom was School Head Prefect in his final year.
Initially located on the West Rand gold mines, the Browns moved to Cullinan where the boys grew up. Their father Loudon, an employee on the mine’s auxiliary service side, took an active interest in sport, earned provincial colours as a bowls player, and his sporting prowess clearly imparted on his sons.
According to Wilf, the family initially lived in a wood and iron home in relatively humble surroundings,’ replicating PBHS Old Boy Gray Hofmeyr’s The Villagers to a tee. Produced in the seventies, Hofmeyr’s production was SA’s first TV soap opera and one of the most popular home-grown series ever.
Said Tom: “Our house was located in Hotel Street, opposite the Cullinan Railway Station, not far from the shops and all other facilities. This was our first abode of four houses in Cullinan, free, which made a big difference to the family finances”.
All their forefathers of Scottish, Irish and Cornish ancestry came from fairly humble beginnings, Tom explained. Their grandfather, James Brown, set sail for SA at the outbreak of the Boer War as an ‘unconventional fighter’, returned to Scotland at the conclusion of the War, and then returned with his wife, Maggie Loudon, on realizing that SA was a land of opportunity. They lived initially in Durban but the lure of the goldfields resulted in their relocation to Krugersdorp where James opened a contracting business. Their father, Loudon Brown, was born in Krugersdorp in 1911.
Loudon did his apprenticeship as a carpenter and worked for the Randfontein Municipality, married Alma Matthews, and Stan was born two years later. They then moved to Cullinan where Loudon acquired a job as ‘foreman carpenter. Wilf arrived on the scene in 1942.
Life for them was tough, but Loudon always maintained a wonderful garden, vegetable patch and fruit orchard. Alma, a devout Methodist whose family came first, managed the family finances, proudly saw to it that her sons were smartly-dressed, and that her husband had bowls money to buy two drinks – one for him and one for his bowls opponent.
For his sins, Loudon was also the green-keeper and became the Premier Mine Singles Champion on more than a dozen occasions. Later, he rose to being the Northern Transvaal Singles Champion and narrowly missed out on being selected a Springbok for the 1958 Empire Games in Vancouver. On one occasion, Tom recalled, Stan was given time off school to accompany his father to Rhodesia and soaked it all up.
PRIMARY SCHOOL
The boys attended the Cullinan dual medium primary school which had both Afrikaans and English classes, but for all intents and purposes was Afrikaner dominant with a mainly Afrikaner ethos. Sport was restricted to rugby and athletics, with an occasional swimming gala. Nevertheless, Stan participated with gusto, proved himself an excellent rugby player, emerged as the school 100 yards star, and did well as a swimmer and diver.
Being a mine, other facilities and opportunities were also available to the boys. They spent much time either in the local park or at the nearby golf club playing soccer, cricket (with a tennis ball and dustbin as a wicket), and tennis. Badminton was another outlet and Stan emerged as a formidable player in his own right. Boxing, however, was considered by their mother as taboo. On one occasion a visiting Scottish Presbyterian Minister warned the boys that boxing was the ‘devil’s sport’, startling them somewhat.
“It was a carefree life for all children on the mine”, recalled Tom. “All facilities were well maintained and free, except for bioscope. One shilling covered it all, comprising entrance (sixpence), ice-cream (a tickey), and sweets (a tickey). All that was required was given, but certainly not heaped on us”.
Stan also loved animals, engaged in pigeon-racing, and was distraught when someone shot his beloved choc pigeon. Tears flowed!
As the senior figure, Stan was, of course, extremely attentive to his younger brothers’ needs, nurtured their sporting abilities, and encouraged outperformance. Said Tom: “Stan undoubtedly pioneered the way for both Wilf and me. He was always the leader, our guardian, bright and energetic. He also often had to fight his way through the Afrikaner influence which abounded. Invariably there was considerable bitterness and often we had to run for our lives following the end-of-day bell, or face what was to be served up”.
Recalls Wilf, “I remember, for instance, when we had to have our class photographs taken, he was there to button up my shirt, comb my hair, and ensure that I generally looked respectable”.
SCHOOL HOUSE
Locationwise, Clapham High School or CBC north east of Pretoria might have seemed the logical options for the Brown boys, but train trips daily would have proved ludicrous. Loudon and Alma explored options in Johannesburg, but eventually concluded that PBHS was their best bet and Stan was accepted at School House.
Recalled Stan: “Messrs Peter Bantock and ‘Drip’ Hendry received both Alan Hector and myself on arrival at the House with our parents. Then, with a lump in my throat, I watched Dad’s illustrious Chev disappear down the drive and then turned to face the throng of boys sitting on the School Houser steps, benches and House verandah wall. A new adventure, a new challenge, and a new world. I was only 12 years old!”
The drama however didn’t end there. A few hours later Loudon and Alma returned to the House to advise Stan that his adopted gran, Aunt Lightbody, had just passed away. He was called from the Prep Room and met with his folks. Distraught, he was once again obliged to witness the Chev disappear down the driveway.
Crying, he could only hide himself in the downstairs toilet and was discovered by a prefect who immediately grasped the situation. He accompanied Stan to the ‘New Boys Dorm’ and remained with him. This saved Stan from having to face the 50-strong Prep Room! “What School in SA; no, what School in the World, could have overseen that situation so sensitively and so perfectly. I remained eternally grateful to School House”, Stan told his former house mates at a reunion function 60 years later.
Mr Willy Brooks, incidentally had been adamant that Stan should not be accommodated at Solomon House because he had skipped a year at primary school and this reflected in ‘too many red rings on his Standard Five report’. The Vice-Headmaster later admitted that he’d misread the situation and should have admitted all the Brown brothers’.
Incongruously, in a letter in August 1962 in the writer’s possession, Mr Brooks wrote that Tom was one of the finest Head Prefects that the School had produced. “He is a young man of fine character, excellent morals and exemplary conduct… He displays great qualities of determination, both physical and moral and more”. Tom won the Old Boys Association Prize that year.
Stan naturally excelled at School House and the wider School from the outset. According to his contemporaries he was well-liked by his peers, respected by juniors, and proved an immensely capable all-round sportsman, particularly at cricket, rugby, athletics’ and swimming.
Said Rev. Dr Louis Bosch to his credit, “He was a good guy to be with, whose rapport with people and friends was commendable. His approach to life was positive, never abrasive nor arrogant. This was overwhelmingly shown in his sporting abilities, in the class, and acceptance if things didn’t go his way. It was further fortified by his sense of honour, fairness and dependability”.
SCHOOL CRICKET
“Stan realized from the outset that if he was to feature, he needed to get out and make it happen”, said Tom. “This he did as a cricketer, rugby player, athlete and swimmer. At cricket he quickly worked out that results were all important (runs and wickets) to be chosen for the ‘A sides’.
“And at rugby, because he was tall for his age, he was placed at lock, but when his speed was discovered, he was transferred to the three-quarters as a wing or centre in the ‘A side’. He featured among the School’s best sprinters during the Athletics season; swimming was easy for him in breast- and backstroke, and could have earned him a white blazer if those activities had been seriously pursued. Further, he was consistently an above-average tennis player”.
Stan rose in the overall ranks rapidly, played first team cricket (a fast bowler and opening batsman) and participated in two Nuffield Cricket weeks for North Eastern Transvaal. Among his team mates in the 1957 side in East London were emergent stars like Eddie Barlow, ‘Kitch’ Banyard, Peter Corbett, Allan Hector and ‘Tiger’ Lance.
In the 1958 side in Pietermaritzburg, he batted lower in the order and as such had little chance of outperforming. However, he consistently took wickets, including 6 for 32 in one game. Fellow players included Peter Corbett, Alan Hector and Neville Holmes.
He and Keith Kinsella opened the batting when the A Field Oval was opened in 1958, and he scored the first 50 on that turf. His final score was 67.
In key matches against KES, he proved a constant ‘thorn-in-the flesh’ for Springbok captain-to-be, Ali Bacher, whom he dismissed cheaply on several occasions.
Some commentators believed that Stan could have made SA Schools as a bowler had it not been for the prodigious Peter Pollock who ruled the waves at the time. Pollock who attended fellow famous boys’ school, Grey High in PE, first played SA Schools in 1957 at age 16 and, at age 20, took 3 for 61 and 6 for 38 in his first test against New Zealand in Durban.
BEATING THE ODDS
Stan had the highest regard for Eddie Barlow, among others. This narrative:
Eddie came to us from WHPS at the beginning of Form 11 in 1954 with rumours that he could play a good game of cricket. When the new arrival turned out to be a blond-haired youngster who wore glasses, we wondered whether he was as good as everyone said. A wicket-keeper standing up to the stumps with glasses seemed to us to be a rather dangerous pastime.
Be that as it may, Eddie walked into the Under 14 A team as our wicket keeper batsman – and the very next year kept wicket for the 1st XI and North-Eastern Transvaal Schools! Eddie possessed enormous courage, guts and self-belief.
In 1957 at the beginning of the first term the first Cricket XI gathered for the first net practice under the guidance of ‘Snake’ Hofmeyr. Eddie had kept wicket throughout his school career, but we needed an opening bowler and there was no one to fill that position.
The previous year I had opened the bowling with Jackie Botton and I needed an opening partner. Snake got us together and told us that there was a young wicket-keeper called Elton Chatterton available and that he wanted to try out Eddie as an opening bowler. He promptly took out a brand new ball and tossed it to a wide-eyed Eddie.
Eddie, at his showy best, loved this. ‘Watch me swing the ball in and the next ball away’, he said. And so it went on. The poor batsmen didn’t know what had hit them, and Eddie was having the time of his life. We wondered if Snake was doing the right thing.
Several Saturdays later we were standing on the Pretoria Station platform, waiting for the train to arrive to take us to Jo’burg to play KES (whose team included Ali Bacher). From Johannesburg Station we caught a bus to the school.
Eddie said to me, ‘Stan, I feel so good today. I’m going to score a pile of runs or take a stack of wickets’. I took this with a pinch of salt because Eddie was always enthusiastic and always had such a strong belief in his own ability that he was often inclined to make rich statements.
We batted first, and Eddie made five runs. We were soon staring down the barrel until the score book reflected: ‘Barlow 8 for 28’. And that was the end of King Edwards and the Ali Bacher threat.
This kind of performance was repeated time and again.
SCHOOL RUGBY
Developed and indeed hardened at Cullinan primary school level, Stan played a mean game of rugby at Boys High and was remembered mostly for his speed-bursts at centre for the 1st XV. Recalled Wilf: “Eddie Barlow who generally made the breaks, insisted that Stan distanced himself, and then passed to him to sprint for the try-line. Stan was extremely quick and almost impossible to catch”.
Another of Stan’s Barlow yarns:
I was amazed at Eddie’s insight and ability on the rugby field. I don’t know where he got this all from, but he was extremely mature in his approach at even the young age of 14. In the Under 15 A team I had the privilege of playing on the right wing with Eddie in the outside centre position on my side…
He always took the ball running at full pace, liked going from the outside gap using an excellent body swerve. If he got through the gap, he would score a try, or draw the fullback and I would score. Easy!
Eddie would never give me a hospital pass; he would rather take the tackle himself or put through a well-executed grubber bouncing beautifully to run on to and score. He would on occasions swerve out and run directly at the wing marking me who was forced to tackle him. At the last moment he would slip me the ball and another try. The result was that I had wonderful season scoring numerous tries. These are some of the reasons why he soon went on to play for Wits, U19 Transvaal, and Transvaal against the ‘British Lions’ and New Zealand.
In response to an article in The Phobian, said Dr Ray Hinds of the 1957 1st XV which Stan graced:
I must set the record straight. I notice that the 1957 side which I captained is not even mentioned among the BEST sides the School has produced. Nor do I wish to enter into an argument as to whether we should or shouldn’t have been mentioned. But I have great difficulty understanding why we were left out of the MOST FAMOUS sides, considering that we won 13 out of 17 matches. If percentages as low as 68% (1995) and 70.8% (1996) are quality, then certainly the 1957 record must qualify with a percentage of 76.5%
Sure, we were not a record-breaking team, but it was a team that played rugby in the true spirit of the game and which was probably one of the best exponents of the art of coordinated play.
Our biggest regret, of course, was the fact that a ‘flu epidemic’ prevented us from playing Affies that year. Considering that we beat KES 21-9, it was known that we were the favourites to win…Perhaps I was no slouch myself, but it would be unfair to name names. Because EVERYONE in that side was great. We were a team and that was the key factor.
The saddest thing about Boys High rugby is that we have no names amongst the ‘greats’ of Springbok rugby, which we should have. Goodness knows, we have had the quality of players to be there!
JJ Mayne, Sports Editor of the Pretoria News at that time, expressed a similar view:
Rugby that would put most senior sides to shame was played in Johannesburg on Saturday when PBHS first team scored a convincing 24-8 win over Jeppe…When these schools meet, the matches should really be showpieces at Loftus Versveld and Ellis Park…an exhibition of rugby as it should be played.
In the match against Affies at Loftus Versveld the following year, Stan was badly concussed by a stiff arm tackle by one of the Affies boys. His ear was also seriously wrenched (but immediately bandaged by first-aid attendants). He played on relentlessly, scored two extraordinary penalties from the halfway line, but couldn’t recall one iota the following day.
So acute was the concussion, in fact, that he struggled for several weeks to concentrate, accompanied by serious headaches. He didn’t write ‘mock’ (trial exams) and never played rugby again.
SOMETHING DIFFERENT
Hilariously, a School side which included Stan was challenged to a social game of soccer on A Rugby Field by a team of masters comprising among others the Headmaster, Mr Desmond Abernethy, Mr Wil Hofmeyr, Mr George Batty and the Mulvenna brothers. Messrs Abernethy and Hofmeyr were aged roughly 50 at the time, and most fellow players a generation or two younger.
Mr Hofmeyr and Stan headed for the ball, swerved in the same direction, collided, and Mr Hofmeyr landed on his back and was apparently carried from the field. Stan, for his part, got up, wiped himself down, and continued the game without ado. Merely an accidental pile-up, it elicited much amusement but no rancor. Mr Hofmeyr, who was a fine sportsman at Oxford University in the late 1920s, was soon back on his feet again and returned to his classroom.
Stan was also fondly remembered as a splendid coach to juniors in the House, Wilf noted. “I recall playing for the under 14 B side and had to mark a fellow School House player, Keith Blake, who was big for his age and went on to win the School 100 yards. Stan said to me, ‘lay into him as soon as he gets the ball, because he’s extremely fast and you’ll need to get him quickly’. I listened, and thanks to Stan, many of these tips eventually got me into the 1ST XV”.
BOYS WILL ALWAYS BE BOYS…
While many parents may dream that their boys may one day become (or are) beautifully behaved, there is also a flipside to it. Many of the most ‘challenging kids’, in a boarding house certainly, become some of the most determined, entrepreneurial and sensitive people that you’ll ever have the opportunity of meeting.
While adults are told to ‘think out of the box’, many of these kids were never in the box in the first place. Often, their qualities are not appreciated until much later in life, when their ability to think for themselves and make things happen drives their success. Think of Richard Branson, Albert Einstein and Lady Gaga, all of whom ‘came up short’ at school
This charming narrative from Stan’s housemate and lifelong friend Alan Calenborne:
Stan and I bunked out one Saturday afternoon to see the musical Oklahoma which had recently opened.
After the movie we hitched back to school and as we approached the House, Alan Hector, who was Head of House, came running down the steps, looking anxious and told us that we were in serious trouble, and that the Senior Housemaster, Mr Desmond Abernethy, was waiting to see us.
It turned out that both Stan and I had completely forgotten that we had an Inter-House tennis match against Solomon House.
When we entered Abe’s study he was really uptight and proceeded to rip into us.
Amongst other issues, he told us that we had let ourselves down, and more importantly we had let the House down.
As such, Stan and I had to appear before our peers, who were to determine what the punishment should be.
So, all the matrics were instructed to meet in the prep room to decide our fate.
Eventually, Alan Hector said, “Look, what punishment would you guys actually prefer?”, and, of course, we both immediately opted to be tanned.
When we returned to Abe’s study, he asked Alan what had been decided.
“We have decided that they should be caned, Sir”
“And, Hector, what number of strokes did you decide upon?”
“Uh, we decided that we would leave that up to you, Sir”
So we ended up getting six “strokes “each.
It’s an anecdote that Stan, Alan and I used to recall from time to time.
Another of Stan’s narratives relating to Eddie Barlow:
Eddie was a naughty, adventurous youngster, as we all were in those days. So into matric we went, and Mr Abernethy appointed us both as prefects. Eddie got me into trouble in Dr Schiff’s science practical class, and as a school prefect to be caught red-handed was uncomfortable to say the least, but I suppose it was pay-back time for my having smacked him in the eye years before. That incident, of course, was not intentional.
This is what happened. We were gathered in groups doing science experiments. All was going exceptionally well for a change, and the boys were all actively involved.
Out of the blue Eddie says, “If you place your thumb on top of the tap, without the spout, on the vacant end-bench, and I switch the tap on slowly, I bet you the pressure would become too great to control”. I disagreed, so we decided to test our theories. There I was with my thumb on the tap and Eddie turning the water on at full blast. My thumb did not budge and so I looked at Eddie and smiled.
He, in turn, grinned back and to my dismay he bumped my hand off the tap, and made a quick duck back to our experimental bench. There I was stranded taking a shower with the water shooting to the ceiling. Needless to say, I spent break cleaning up the mess to the hilarity of the many who came to jeer, laugh and crack jokes…
MARITZBURG UNIVERSITY
On matriculating, Stan took a job at the Cullinan Mine Store to augment his funds for university and played cricket for the PBHSOB 1st Team, which involved hitch-hiking to Pretoria every weekend and teaming up with his former bowling partner Jackie Botton, Denis Lindsay and Glen Hall (all subsequently Springboks) and the Corbett brothers. An enormous array of talent.
Considerable efforts were made by the mine management to persuade Stan to become a learner miner, but his Dad, Loudon, would have nothing of it. “I don’t want any of my boys to be miners”, he said.
Chris Burger, Natal cricket player and Springbok, eventually persuaded Stan to attend Natal University (Maritzburg) where he flourished both academically and sportswise.
Former Natal and Springbok cricket captain, Jackie McGlew, remarked jokingly on one occasion that ‘Stan’s run-up as a fast bowler seemed quicker than his delivery’.
Stan played cricket for Natal University combined side, under Peter Muzzel, and later for Zingari. Among his contemporaries were Natal provincial captain Berry Versveld, Dennis Gamsay, Pat Trimborn and Coach Wally Hammond.
Hammond, of course, had played for England and Gloucestershire in a career that lasted from 1920 to 1951. His Test career spanned 85 matches, he scored 7,249 runs and took 83 wickets. He died in 1965.
The Varsity cricket ground was subsequently named after Hammond. Said Tom: “We all, including my son Duncan, represented Varsity on Hammond Field. I took Stan to the ground shortly before his death. He marveled at all the names that had graced the field and expressed how fortunate we had all been to have had those experiences and to have met with wonderful people!!!”
Stan also played baseball and soccer in the first division of the South African Universities Soccer in 1963.
He graduated with a BA (Hons) Geography, and B Ed, UED.
Varsity accommodation in Maritzburg was at the former ‘Oribi Military Barracks’ and fairly rustic to say the least. It was a tin-roofed structure near the main railway line to Durban and quite a walk to the Varsity Campus. The main means of transport was bicycle. Most under-graduates weren’t allowed cars.
On one occasion, Stan recalled, a prankster piled all the bicycles in a single heap whilst everyone was enjoying a dance in the ‘Great Hall’. “It was a chaotic scene and most guys simply walked back to Oribi after returning their partners to the Women’s residence which was on campus”.
Stan, by his own admission, had a sharp eye for ‘lovely girls’ and during this time met fellow student Helen Ferguson whom he married in January 1964. From Vanderbijlpark and of Scottish descent, her father worked at Iscor and her mother was a home-economics teacher. Helen graduated with a BA (English) UED. and then commenced her career as an English teacher at the Voortrekker High School in Maritzburg.
Stan and Helen in time, after 21 years of marriage and four children together, parted ways but remained good friends. He eventually married Val Durie, a family friend of Helen’s parents and who had graduated from Maritzburg Varsity with a B Sc Agriculture. She had also married, lived in the US for some years, and then returned to SA and to join her father in a silk-screening printing business. Much later Stan and Val moved to New Zealand to be close to her girls.
CAREER
Stan’s teaching career started in 1964 and included stints at HaRward Boys High, Maritzburg College and Alexandra High School as Vice Principal.
These point to his initially having had a relatively strong penchant for Colonial/Victorian/Maritzburg-based schools. Maritzburg College, of course, was founded in 1863, is the oldest school in KZN and one of the most longstanding in SA. It served as a British Army Hospital during the Boer War.
Housed in a stunning historical building, today it comprises about 1 400 learners and 450 boarders and was ranked 4th out of the top 100 best high schools in Africa by Africa Almanac in 2003 This was based upon quality of education, student engagement, strength and activities of alumni, school profile, internet and news visibility.
Haward Boys High in PMB Central was built 110 years ago in Old Edwardian style and today is the PMB Music School. Alexandra, started in 1960, was originally an all-white boys’ school and became a co-ed in 1992. It’s currently one of the top-performing Model C schools in KZN. Stan also taught at the Natal Teachers Training College.
In 1984 he returned to the Transvaal as Deputy Principal at Bryanston High School and during 1985 was asked to open Ferndale High School. “Opening a new school is extremely challenging and rewarding, especially when I look back on the very considerable achievements”, he recounted. Of interest, two of Ferndale’s houses were accorded the names ‘Abernethy’ and ‘Hofmeyr’. Stan also introduced the PBHS school prayer at Ferndale High.
According to Syd Adler, Stan emerged as one of the most respected and loved headmasters in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs and was well known for his very special relationship with boys. “He had considerable charisma, was solid, generous, empathetic and extremely fair. He was difficult to fault”.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Stan was awarded Rotary International’s highest award and became a Paul Harris Fellow for his work done with Rotary and for Rotary Exchange Scholars. He was also the author of geography textbooks (published by Shuter and Shooter, PMB for standards five six and seven.
On retiring from teaching, Stan worked for Trellidor, became a superb bowler, authored his book on bowls and, and arguably overstated that he ‘enjoyed the slide down the other side’.
A TRUE GENTLEMAN
Like his father Loudon, Stan acquired a keen interest over a period of more than three and a half decades as a bowler, became a South African Umpire, Registered Coach, Provincial Selector and Team Manager. He won his club singles 15 times and was selected for the South African Masters Singles on 11 occasions from 1974 to 1986. During this period he consistently won four or more of the seven matches he played in each of the SA Masters tournaments and was a Springbok reserve.
He also replicated his father’s sportsmanship.
Prior to Stan’s passing, Bob Donnelly, one of SA’s best known international bowlers and sports administrators, remarked of him: “Mention the name Stan Brown and the first thought that enters your mind is a gentleman with a soul and integrity. Stan’s character is punctuated by a sincere interest in his fellow men and genuine interest for the game of bowls. I have found him to be fair and generous to a fault with his time, knowledge and his friendship”.
Stan’s key to success was quite simple, said Donnelly. “He was an honest person who adored the game of bowls. As an assiduous student of it, he was as knowledgeable as anyone I have ever met. He derived enormous pleasure in helping the younger and not so young bowlers achieve their potential by being deeply interested in their individual talent and style. His approach was one suggesting and cajoling rather than laying down the law. Stan was always willing to share his thoughts and ideas whilst at the same time being receptive to suggestion and innovation”.
The School aside, Stan will be deeply missed in a multiple of outstanding communities.