Remembering Shirley Browne
Shirley Browne
September 24, 1924 – December 3, 2023
Shirley S. Browne, a longtime public relations practitioner in St. Louis, died on December 3, 2023. She was 99 years old.
Born in St. Louis, Shirley lived most of her life in Kirkwood. She attended St. Louis public schools and Washington University, where she earned a degree in journalism.
Shirley Browne began her professional career in public relations with the Girl Scout Council of Greater St. Louis after devoting 15 years to that organization as a volunteer. In the 1970s, she served as press secretary to two St. Louis County Executives, Lawrence Roos and Gene McNary. Shirley spent three years at the Bi-State Development Agency as director of public information and was employed for 10 years as director of advertising and public relations at United Van Lines world headquarters in Fenton. She was a senior account executive at BHN Advertising & Public Relations before resigning in 1990 to open her own consulting business.
Shirley was an accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America and a past president of that organization’s St. Louis chapter. She was a member of the Press Club of Metropolitan St. Louis, Women in Communications, the Advertising Club of St. Louis, and the St. Louis Counts. She served three years as a board member of St. Joseph’s Institute for the Deaf.
A lifelong Republican, Shirley served as president of the Bonhomme Township Republican Club and vice president of the Bonhomme Township Federated Women’s Republican Club.
After retiring from her career in public relations, Shirley served two terms as a trustee of the Kirkwood Public Library. She volunteered as a reading tutor for illiterate adults and was a volunteer reader at Talking Tapes/Textbooks on Tape. A member of Grace Episcopal Church in Kirkwood and an Episcopalian throughout her life, she served the church as a vestry member and lay reader, and she chaired the Episcopal Church Women communications committee and outreach development committee. She was an active member of the Kirkwood Historical Society and served on its board of directors for six years.
An enthusiastic fan of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, Shirley was a season ticket holder for many years, supporting the team through its ups and downs in St. Louis and in spring training in Florida.
Shirley was an elegant, gracious, dignified lady always “dressed to the nines.” She served as a mentor to many through the years, tactfully balancing warmth and understanding with the clear expectation of top performance in those she guided and supervised. An outstanding writer, she effectively applied this talent on behalf of employers, political figures, and clients. Her influence will long be felt by the organizations she served and the individuals whose lives she positively impacted.
Survivors include a daughter, Diane Thompson, of Kirkwood; a son, Stephen, of Show Low, Arizona; grandchildren Paul, Angela, Nickie, Angie, and Lisa — grandson Dusty predeceased her; 14 great-grandchildren; and eight great-great-grandchildren; and special friend John Newsom. Shirley’s family wishes to thank the staff of Laclede Groves Lutheran Senior Services and the family of Grace Episcopal Church for their support, especially during the past year.
A memorial service will be held at Grace Episcopal Church, 514 East Argonne, Kirkwood, Missouri, beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 16.
Those wishing to make memorial contributions in Shirley’s honor may wish to consider the Grace Church Memorial Fund, Kirkwood Public Library, Kirkwood Historical Society, Humane Society of Missouri, or the charity of one’s choice.
Give rest, O Christ, to your servant Shirley, with your saints,
where sorrow and pain are no more, neither sighing, but life everlasting.