Louis Avon Browning

Browning, Louis Avon - age 92 of Knoxville died Tuesday, May 31, 2011 at Shannondale Nursing Care Facility. He was surrounded by his loving wife Emily Pryor Browning, his son Dr. Louis Avon Browning, Jr. his grandson, Louis Avon Browning, III and his daughter and son-in-law, Mimi and Milton Turner. Mr. Browning was born September 17, 1918 in Pearson, Georgia, the youngest child of Viola Guest Browning and Henry Floyd Browning. He grew up in Brunswick, Georgia where he distinguished himself as an athlete at Glynn Academy, one of the country's oldest high schools. He attended Austin Peay University in Clarksville, Tennessee on a football scholarship before entering military service in 1941. During World War II, he became one of only 26 American glider pilots to participate, as volunteers, in the Ladbroke Mission into Sicily in July of 1943. After a dangerous, night-time water landing in The Mediterranean Sea in an area of German mines, First Lieutenant Browning was able to save himself and his entire crew by escaping through the plane's hatch and staying afloat on a broken wing section for the rest of the night. Later, the next day, Browning and his crew were rescued to safety by a British destroyer. Other military action included participation in the Pre-Normandy Invasion, flying combat troops into their positions. He also served in the "Market Garden" Mission into Holland, and Arnheim, made famous by the movie "A Bridge Too Far." His awards include the Air Medal with one Cluster and the Dutch Orange Lanyard, and later, A Knight of Belgium. Louis was discharged from the Army in 1945 with rank of Captain USAF Reserve. Through the years, he has been active in the National World War II Glider Pilot Association attending their national conventions in different parts of the U.S. where he enjoyed reunions with his army "brothers". After World War II, Louis completed his education at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia with a B. S. in Civil Engineering. He turned down acceptance at M.I.T. after meeting a certain young coed at The University of Georgia - Miss Emily Pryor of Douglas, Georgia! On June 29, 1947, he and Emily Pryor were married during a record heat wave in Douglas, Georgia. Their marriage has stayed "very warm" and loving over 64 years. Their journey together has taken them from Atlanta, Georgia; to Jacksonville, Florida; to Denver, Colorado; to Brunswick, Georgia; to Rome, Georgia; back to Atlanta, Georgia and finally to Knoxville. Tennessee where they have lived for over 44 years. Together, they raised two sons and a daughter, all of whom have lived and worked in Knoxville. His early business career included surveying and general contracting. He then joined Armco Steel Corporation as a sales engineer and enjoyed a long and interesting career as a specialist in steel pipe products, retiring from the company in 1983. Shortly thereafter, Louis came out of retirement serving the Knoxville area as a civil engineering consultant. As the rock of The Brownings - a devoted father and husband - Louis always put his family's needs and wants ahead of his own. He was especially fond of his home in Riverbend in West Knoxville, and taking beach vacations with his family to his boyhood home of Brunswick, Jeckyll Island, St. Simons Island, and Sea Island, Georgia, known as "The Marshes of Glynn," as well as to Sullivan's Island and Wild Dunes near Charleston, Sc. He also enjoyed traveling with his wife to points of interest throughout the United States. In 1992, Louis took her back to England to show her places he had been during World War II. In his spare time, he was an avid reader, gardener, hunter and fisherman, and passed these loves along to his sons and daughter: Louis Avon Browning, Jr., Emily Marie (Mimi) Browning, and Wilson Pryor Browning. In July of 2003, he lost his cherished son Wilson in a tragic, private plane crash in The Cumberland Mountains State Park. He is a long-time member of Church Street Methodist Church, Kiwanis Club of Knoxville, and The Professional Society of Civil Engineers, Tennessee Chapter which he served as President, as well as other civic and community organizations. He is survived by his wife, Emily Pryor Browning; son Louis Avon Browning, Jr.; daughter and son-in-law Mimi and Milton Turner; daughter-in-law Virginia Bond Browning, all of Knoxville; grandchildren: Louis Avon Browning, III and wife Elizabeth Powell Browning of Knoxville; Joseph Pryor Browning and wife Jessie Shalawylo Browning of Knoxville; Shannon Marie Browning Harig-Blaine and husband Elisha Harig-Blaine of Arnold, Maryland; Mary Emily Turner of Richmond, Virginia; Marie Sinclair Tucker of New York City, New York; and Wilson Pryor Browning, Jr. of Knoxville; great grandchildren: Pryor, Avery, Louis and Ella Browning, all of Knoxville and Ethan Harig-Blaine of Arnold, Maryland. Brother-in-law Luther McBride Pryor of Fayetteville, Georgia, and sister-in-law, Jo Pryor of Huntsville, Alabama. Step-grandchildren: Milton and Wendy Turner, Cam and Karen Turner, Matt and Annie Turner, all of Knoxville; Jennifer Elkins Turner of Huntington Center, Vermont; Step-great grandchildren: Jared, Logan, Tara, Gray and Tristan Turner, all of Knoxville; and Geneva Liebhardt of Huntington Center, Vermont. Adopted grandchildren: Richard and Deborah Whipple and adopted great grandchildren: Edward, Araminta and Miranda Whipple. Nieces: Margaret Whittle Butler and husband Rev. Mark Butler of Hendersonville, North Carolina; and Marie Whittle Park and husband David Park of Tucson, Arizona. Browning nieces and nephews in Brunswick, Georgia. Several other nieces, and nephews. A Memorial Service will be held on Thursday at 7:00 pm at Rose Mortuary Mann Heritage Chapel with Rev. Cabel Trent and Rev. Andy Ferguson officiating. Interment will be Friday at 9:30 am at Tennessee Veterans Cemetery on Lyons View Drive with full military honors. The family will receive friends from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Thursday at Rose Mortuary Mann Heritage Chapel. Friends and family who wish are requested to make memorial contributions to Church Street UMC., P.O. Box 1303, Knoxville, TN 37901. Arrangements by Rose Mortuary Mann Heritage Chapel. Online condolences may be made at www.rosemortuary.com

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Louis Avon Browning

September 17, 1918 - May 31, 2011