Fannie Bess Padgett Brown

Fannie Bess Padgett Brown, 88, of Hoschton, Georgia, went home to be with her Heavenly Father on July 3, 2026. She was born in Cartersville, Georgia, on September 8, 1937, to William Paul Padgett and Mary Nellie Cain Padgett. Fannie was the youngest of six children, the baby of a her tight-knit and loving family from whom she learned the value of doing good and honest work, of being trustworthy and dependable, and of cherishing God’s gift of family and good friends. 

She graduated from Cartersville High School in 1955, and soon thereafter moved to Atlanta with her young husband, Lewis Brown, who was a freshman at Georgia Tech. While he worked on a degree, she worked to put him through school. Following a brief stint at the Sears and Roebuck, Co., she went to work for Delta Airlines. Her exceptional skills with typing and shorthand landed her the job as the secretary to the president, Collett Woolman. She left Delta in 1959 to stay home and care for their new baby girl, Sherri Gay. She returned to work in 1965 at the Internal Revenue Service Taxpayer Service Center in Atlanta. Due to the quality of her work and her knowledge of accounting, she was given numerous opportunities in different departments during her 30-year career with the IRS. When she retired in 1996, she was managing all of the Taxpayer Service offices throughout the state of Georgia. Employees from all of the different offices across the state traveled to Atlanta to celebrate her retirement and thank her for her exceptional leadership. 

Throughout her life, Fannie enjoyed making things with her hands. She always had a beautifully decorated and well-kept home that was filled with her handmade treasures of needlework, ceramics, floral arrangements, and seasonal décor. She also expressed her creativity through food and had a reputation as a fabulous cook. She loved trying new recipes, especially from Southern Living, and kept a collection of her favorites annotated with notes and stories associated with each one. Delighting her family and friends with delicious food was a source of joy and fulfilment for her. 

Fannie also loved bringing people together around the table to play cards, and invitations for game night usually included some kind of dessert or special snack. She enjoyed all kinds of card games and usually served as scorekeeper. Even though the gatherings were meant to be fun, you could never mistake her kindness for weakness. She always played to win! Bridge was her favorite, and she made some of her best friends from participating in Bridge groups through the years. 

Fannie loved birds (especially redbirds), animals, picnics, iced tea, fresh vegetables from the garden, zinnias, yellow roses, the mountains, rocking chairs, porch swings, good conversation, the first cup of coffee in the morning, and shopping trips with her daughter. She viewed all of these simple pleasures of life as gifts from God, for which she was sincerely grateful, and greatest among these pleasures was the love that she had for her family.   

Fannie Bess Padgett Brown made her mark in this world and will be fondly remembered by all who knew her. 

Fannie is survived by her beloved only daughter Sherri Gay Brown Breunig, the light of her life and best friend; her son-in-law, Michael Joseph Breunig, whom she admired and dearly loved like a son; brother-in-law Bill Britton Sr. (Mary Nell); sister-in-law Debbye Brown Blalock (Gary); nephews Bill Britton, Jr., Bob Britton (Sue), Stan Padgett, Ken Padgett, Jason Blalock, Jeremy Blalock (Donna); nieces Catharine Carroll (Eric), Mary Jennifer Britton Zbinden (Alexander); two great-goddaughters Tori Zbinden Day (Matt) and Elizabeth Zbinden (Calvin), and her gentle and loving cat Barney. 

She is preceded in death by her husband of 72 years, Welborn Lewis Brown Jr., the love of her life; her parents William Paul Padgett and Nellie Cain Padgett; sisters Thelma Padgett Smith (Pete), Sara Padgett Williams (J.C.), Mary Nell Padgett Britton (Bill); brothers Hughes Padgett, Paul Padgett Jr.(Egie); sister in-law Penelope “Penny” Brown Bryant (Bill); parents-in-law Welborn Lewis Brown Sr. and Louise Brown; niece Jane Smith Beck (Brooke), nephews Joseph Britton (Nancy), Paul Padgett III (Deborah), Clinton Willliams, Jeffrey Blalock (Karen), and Michael Carroll; and her dear pets Felix, Gidget, Bandit, Fluffy, Jetta, Zach, Jessie, Morgan, and Jackson.  

A worship service celebrating the life of Fannie Padgett Brown will be held on August 7 at 11:00 a.m. at Christ Place Church in Flowery Branch, Georgia. 

The family requests that memorial gifts be made to: 
Eagle Ranch (eagleranch.org/memorial-gift)

Memorial Park Braselton Funeral Home, 5257 Hwy 53, Braselton, GA 30517, is in charge of arrangements. Online condolences may be shared at Memorial Park Funeral Homes.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Fannie Bess Padgett Brown, please visit our floral store.