Brown, Harvey

BROWN, Harvey Eugene "Gene"

Harvey Eugene "Whiff" Brown, age 96, died on Thursday, October 17, 2024 in Delaware, Ohio. He was born in Dayton, Ohio to the late Harvey A. Brown and A. Marie Brown. He graduated from Stivers High School in 1946 and then went on to the Ohio State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1950. At OSU he was a starting guard for three seasons on the OSU basketball team that won the Big Ten Championship in 1950. He was also pitcher on the OSU baseball team. He is in the Stivers Athletic Hall of Fame and Dayton Baseball Hall of Fame. He remained an avid fan of OSU basketball and football throughout his life, and attended the annual dinner for former players just a few weeks before his death. Whiff married his beloved wife, Vada Shultz Brown, on August 28, 1948 in Dayton, Ohio. They had been married for 72 years when she died in 2020. Whiff served in the U.S. Army from 1952 to 1957 and then went on to a 40 year career at General Motors where he held executive positions in Detroit, MI, Rochester, NY and Lockport, NY. He retired as General Director of Personnel for General Motors' Small Truck Division in Flint, MI. Beyond his work, Whiff also served in the President's Club of OSU and was a member of the Irish Wolfhound Club of America. His daughter, Donna, bred and showed the breed, and Whiff enjoyed accompanying her to shows. Whiff is preceded in death by his sister, Juanita Frost and his daughter, Jamie Ann Brown, who died in 2017 from ALS. He is survived by his daughter, Donna Sue Brown and her husband, Carl Erickson. Whiff's fine sense of humor and his kind, generous spirit will be greatly missed. Inurnment in David's cemetery will be held privately at a later date. Services are in the care of Tobias Funeral Home Belmont Chapel. Condolences for the family can be made at www.tobiasfuneralhome.com. Contributions to one's favorite charity in Whiff's memory are encouraged.

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