Norfolk Remembers

William Graham Brown Jr. of Norfolk, 74, passed away unexpectedly on Nov. 5, 2022. To his family and friends, Bill will be especially missed for his engaging personality, enthusiasm, happiness, kindness, modesty, wit, sense of humor, energy, intelligence, loyalty and dedication. 

Bill was born Feb. 27, 1948, in Point Pleasant, N.J., son of Aimee Hawes Brown Ferguson and William Graham Brown Sr. He grew up in Brielle and Sea Girt, N.J., graduating from Manasquan High School and Colgate University, class of 1970, where he was a member of DEKE fraternity.

His creativity and skill with words made him a natural in the world of advertising. After working at The Asbury Park Press, Sperry Hutchinson, Taylor Wine Company, BBD&O and Young and Rubicam, in 1991 he cofounded the advertising agency Mezzina/Brown in New York City. It later became Agent 16. Clients included RJ Reynolds/Nabisco; The Washington Post Company; The Walt Disney Company; Allied Domecq; Dupont; Goldman Sachs; Intel; Kobrand; Sony; Zappos.com; the City of New York; General Cigar Co.; American Movie Classics; and the Yale School of Music. 

In 2004, he and his wife, Jennie, moved to Norfolk, where Bill became active in the community, serving on various town and regional boards and committees. 

Bill loved his family, his friends (both lifelong and new), the ocean, the beach, golf, bridge, hiking, shooting, traveling, music—especially classical and jazz—and his fabulously fun years in the advertising industry. He was a member of the Society of Cincinnati, the Yale Club of New York and the Norfolk Country Club.  He was especially fond of history and architecture, as evidenced by the homes he lived in and restored in Park Slope, Brooklyn; Brooklyn Heights; East Hampton, N.Y.; Watch Hill, R.I.; and Norfolk. And he always had a warm spot for his Scottish terriers and Westies. 

Bill is survived by his wife Jennie; his aunt, Sandra Fredricks; his uncle, George Hawes; sister Diane Raver; and many much loved “out-laws,” cousins, nieces, nephews and his adored Scottish terriers, Jasper and Daphne. 

A memorial service will be held at the Chapel of the Transfiguration in Norfolk on Saturday, June 3, at 2 p.m. 

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Norfolk dog park or Yale Summer School of Music would be welcome.