Helen Marie Brown

Helen Marie (Haegele) Brown, 83, passed peacefully in her sleep early Sunday morning, September 13, 2026, following a brief and courageous battle with a rare, aggressive form of leukemia. Her family finds comfort knowing she has been reunited in Heaven with those she loved who went before her.

Helen was raised on a dairy farm near Summit Station, outside Pataskala, Ohio. She married Raymond “Ray” Brown shortly before her 18th birthday, sharing 62 years together until his passing. She enjoyed a career of more than 25 years in the banking industry before retiring from Chase Manhattan.

Helen was a remarkable woman of strength, elegance and determination. Always beautifully put together, she loved fashion, jewelry, perfectly styled hair and creating a welcoming home. She had an exceptional eye for detail, a gift for finding the perfect bargain and an appreciation for a properly made Manhattan—always served up, never over ice.

Helen believed things were worth doing well. Her family will fondly remember her high standards, quick wit, remarkable memory and willingness to speak her mind. To her sons, she was always Mother, and to the generations that followed, always Grandmother—roles she held with great pride.

Helen was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Raymond “Ray” Brown; her parents, Carl and Daisy Haegele; her siblings, Ralph Haegele, Dorothy Weller and Charles “Butch” Haegele; and her grandson, Zachary Raymond Brown.

She is survived by her sister, Carla Watson; her sons, Michael (Amanda) Brown and Mark (Christine) Brown; her grandchildren, Devon Brown, Corinne Seymour (Bennet), Brittany Moore (Anthony), Jacalyn Borgan (Alex) and Abigail Cole (Chad); and her great-grandchildren, Makenzie, Margaret, Kaydence, Caleb, Jacob, Gabbie, Cooper, Amelia, Eleanora, Theia and Lyra. Helen also leaves behind her friend and neighbor of 50 years, Lynn Coriell, and many other beloved family members and friends.

Above all, Helen loved her family fiercely. Among her final words was a reminder that beautifully captures what mattered most:

“And don’t you forget—I love you.”

They never will.

A Memorial Service will be announced at a later date.