Wayne H. Brown, 76, of Sebring, Florida, passed away 1 December 2022. He was a retired district superintendent, leading the Northern Michigan District from 2002 to 2015.

Brown was born on June 2, 1946, in Wrightsville, Georgia. He was called to preach at the age of five and went on to join the pioneer class of Nazarene Bible College in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Brown was honored as the Bible College Alumni of the Year four times and received the Dr. Charles H. Strickland Outstanding Leadership Award. After college, he was ordained at the First Church of the Nazarene in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1972.

For 32 years, Brown served as a pastor in New Mexico, Arkansas, Michigan, Texas, and Tennessee, respectively. During this time, he founded two new churches in El Paso, Texas: Montwood Church of the Nazarene and Trinity Church of the Nazarene.

Brown also served 11 years as the district superintendent of the Northern Michigan District. In May 2006, Olivet Nazarene University conferred an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree upon him. He also served on the Board of Trustees for the Nazarene Bible College and Olivet Nazarene University.

While pastoring, Brown served as a police chaplain for 25 years and 13 years as a chaplain for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. As a part of his service with the FBI, he was assigned to go to New York City in September 2001 to help with the 9/11 crisis, working at both Ground Zero and Staten Island.

Brown is survived by his wife, Debbie; sons Richard W. Brown, Brian Brown, Michael D. Brown, and David T. Brown; seven grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

A celebration of life service will be held at Old Hickory Church of the Nazarene on 7 January 2023 at 10 a.m. CDT. The church is located at 605 Jones Street, Old Hickory, TN, 37138.