Former State Farm executive Willie Brown passes away at 74

Posted on March 7, 2022

BLOOMINGTON – A beloved public servant to the Twin Cities, and former State Farm executive vice president, passed away Saturday.

Willie Brown died at the age of 74, according to Kibler Brady Ruestman Memorial Home.

Brown started working for State Farm in 1971 and, after a series of promotions over several decades, was named executive vice president in 2004.

According to a biography on promisecouncil.org, Brown won the NAACP Roy Wilkens award for life-time achievement, and served on numerous county and community boards.

Brown graduated from Illinois State University in 1973 and was elected to the ISU College of Business Hall of Fame in 2005. He was also elected to the ISU College of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 2008. He was also a member of the Illinois Wesleyan University Board of Trustees, and served on the university’s executive committee.

Bloomington’s Multicultural Leadership Institute released a statement in tribute to Brown, which reads in part, “Willie Brown epitomized the best of servant leadership. He focused his resources and time on helping individuals develop. He often donated anonymously to organizations in need. Yet, he shared the truth as he saw it, knowing that a servant leader must sometimes make unpopular decisions because it’s the right thing to do.”

More information on Brown’s achievements and accolades can be found at this link.

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