Jeffrey Scott Brown, 47, passed away on February 3rd in Natick, MA.

Jeff lived his life with deep curiosity, kindness, and sincerity. Love for his family and community was his north star.  He loved the majesty of the written word, learning new things, loud music, running, and reading. He was a generous listener.

Jeff was born on October 4, 1976, in Glendale, CA to Stephen and Jacqueline Brown. He was the oldest of their two children and leaves behind his brother Ryan, also of California. He grew up in southern California, graduating from Long Beach Polytechnic High School. An accomplished student and swimmer, he was named Poly Student Athlete of the Year his senior year. He worked for the Long Beach Fire Department as a beach lifeguard and was a Junior Lifeguard instructor. His brother, also a lifeguard, always said there was no one he would rather work the beach with.

Jeff came east to attend Brown University, graduating with an AB in History. He taught briefly at the American School of Bilbao before returning to the east coast, which would become home. He completed an MBA in Finance from the Questrom School of Business at Boston University and took great pride in earning the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation (CFA® charter). 

Jeff and Amanda met in Boston in 2005 and were drawn to each other’s kindness, love of words, and commitment to family. They were married in 2007 in a joyful ceremony in Yarmouth, Maine. Amanda and Jeff celebrated their 16th anniversary this past July at the Top of the Prudential Center, where they had their first date and where Jeff proposed. Their commitment to and trust in one another was absolute. Together with their three children— Jonah, Lee, and Susannah– they built a wonderful life.

Jeff’s happiest times were spent with his family. He loved long walks in Maine and exploring new places on getaways with Amanda. He threw himself into his children’s passions: watching horror movies with Jonah, throwing a baseball around with Lee, and playing school with Susannah. Dunkin runs on the way to school, boogie-boarding at the beach in Maine and California, visits to bookstores and libraries, music, walks, board games, and silly family dinners brought him great joy. He loved seeing the boys follow in his footsteps as Junior Lifeguards in Long Beach and watching all of his beloved children pursue their own passions, whether ballet, musical theater, or art, at home in Sherborn. 

A skilled writer and deep thinker, Jeff worked in finance at Putnam Investments, Wellington Management, and John Hancock, now Manulife Investment Management. Over the course of his career, he found a way to make his passion for writing his life’s work and found a team with whom he adored working. Most recently, he worked as Head of Content, Private Markets at Manulife.

Jeff brought sincerity, passion, and dedication to everything he did. Running was essential to him, and he ran half marathons regularly. He ran the Long Beach Marathon and fulfilled his dream of running the Boston Marathon in 2015. This past fall he discovered a love of hiking, climbing Mount Washington twice with friends. He loved to travel and enjoyed the opportunity to go to Asia for work earlier this year, as well as a wonderful and memorable family trip to England in 2019.

Jeff was active in the Unitarian Universalist Area Church (UUAC) in Sherborn where he served on the Board of Directors and was a member of the Worship Associates. He found great comfort, friendship, and belonging in that place.

Jeff is survived by his wife, Amanda Christy Brown, of Sherborn, and his three children Jonah, Lee, and Susannah Brown also of Sherborn. He leaves behind his parents, Stephen and Jacqueline Brown of Long Beach, CA; his brother Ryan Brown and sister-in-law Kenda Brown of Rolling Hills, CA; his mother-in-law Susan Christy of Cape Elizabeth, ME; his sisters-in-law Emily Christy of Portland, ME and Laura Genese of Falmouth, ME; his brother-in-law Tom Genese, and his niece and nephews. 

Friends and family will gather to celebrate Jeff’s life at the Unitarian Universalist Area Church in Sherborn on March 2nd at 1:00.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).

Arrangements are under the care of the Chesmore Funeral Home of Holliston.