Kenneth M. Brown
Of Arlington Heights

Kenneth M. Brown was born January 21, 1914 in Canada to Benito and Lanora Brown. He died on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.

Ken was born in 1914 in Alberta, Canada where he learned to play hockey and where his love for the game of hockey began and continued throughout his life. In 1925, his family moved back to Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin; he introduced hockey to other children and they began to play hockey on the frozen Rock River. He received a scholarship to St. Mary’s College Winona, MN and was on the hockey team. When St. Mary‘s College ended the hockey program, he lost his scholarship and he transferred to University of Wisconsin and graduated with a degree in chemical engineering in 1938. After he graduated, he worked for Universal Oil Products, Des Plaines, IL for 41 years. His job took him to many foreign countries including China, when China first re-opened the country to the western world. At UOP, he was instrumental in the development of numerous refining processes, most notably the UOP Merox Process. He was a Fellow and Honorary Member of the American Society for Testing Materials, (ASTM International.) He worked in the forefront of establishing industry standards with ASTM including the formation of rigorous evaluations and standards that are still used today. He also served on the US Department of Interior, Petroleum & Gas Unit National Defense Executive Reserve. Before he retired, he joined a men’s hockey league and played hockey into his early 70’s. He was also an avid genealogist studying and spending much of his time researching and sharing his findings with relatives.

He is survived by his children, Michael (the late Florence) Brown, Stephan Brown, Kenneth (Beverly) Brown, Carletta (Burton) Vanderbilt, Nicholas Brown, and Elizabeth (Gregory) Watson; his eight grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren; his sister, Alice (the late Dan) Scullin; and his many nieces and nephews.

Kenneth was preceded in death by his wife of 68 years, Eleanor (nee Amundson) Brown; his grandson David Brown; his siblings, Elizabeth (the late Jerry) Wiseman, and Maynard (the late Mary) Brown; and his parents.

Visitation Monday, September 19, 2011 from 9:30 AM until time of Funeral Mass 11:00 AM at St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 700 S. Meier Rd., Mt. Prospect. Interment is 11:30 AM,Tuesday at St. Joseph Cemetery in Ft. Atkinson, Wisconsin.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be given to the Nature Conservancy, P.O. Box 6014, Albert Lea, MN 56007 or Catholic Charities, 721 N. LaSalle, Chicago, IL 60654.
 

Glueckert Funeral Home

(847) 253-0168

1520 North Arlington Heights Road

Arlington Heights, IL 60004