Adeline Compton Brown

Adeline Compton Brown, née Gaiennie, 92, of Nashville, Tennessee, passed away peacefully at her home on March 13, 2026. Born on March 17, 1933, in Shreveport, Louisiana, she was the daughter of Escalon Joseph “EJ” and Isabelle Gaiennie. She grew up in Shreveport with her older brother, Escalon Joseph Jr. “Lonnie,” and her maternal grandmother, Marie Voss. Adeline graduated from Villa Duchesne, a Sacred Heart academy in St. Louis, Missouri, and continued her education at Sophie Newcomb College in New Orleans and Georgetown Visitation in Washington, D.C.

Early in her career, Adeline worked in the Society office of the Shreveport Times. A highlight of her professional life was serving as social secretary to First Lady Mamie Eisenhower at the White House during the Eisenhower administration. Her deep longing to see the world then led her on a European tour, where she met her future husband and great love, Reeves “Buster” Brown III. They married in Shreveport on December 20, 1958, and made their home first in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, before settling in Cleveland, Tennessee. They were blessed with four children, whom Adeline considered her greatest gifts. In later years she moved to Nashville to be closer to her children and grandchildren. She often said that in all she poured out for her family, she received far more in return and remained overflowing with gratitude.

Adeline loved her Catholic faith deeply. A daily communicant and longtime active member of the Cathedral of the Incarnation, she taught CCD, prayed fervently for the unborn and their mothers, and was a dedicated member of the St. Cecilia Chapter of the Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic (Third Order). She was received as a Candidate in 2009 and made her Final Promise in 2013, taking the Dominican name “Catherine” in honor of St. Catherine of Siena. In her later years she continued to support the Fraternity as a Prayer Member.

Lovingly known as “Grandy,” Adeline was a lifelong learner who viewed her passing as her “graduation day.” She had a remarkable gift for encouragement, often slipping handwritten scripture verses to others at just the right moment. Her home was a place of laughter and praise for the life God had given her.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Lonnie, her beloved husband Reeves Brown III, and her son Reeves Brown IV. She is survived by her children Isabelle Thorp (John) Norris, Hardwick Marshall Brown, and Clint Gaiennie (Tammy) Brown; her granddaughters Caroline (Simon) Compton Brown Barroso and Mary Catherine Norris; and her great-grandchildren Oliver “Ollie” and Griffin Barroso.