Paying my last respect to Terry Brown

*First appeared in the Sept. 10, 2014 edition of the Laurel Chronicle newspaper

My friend Sen. Terry Brown passed away last week after a brief but intense battle with lung cancer. Doubtful many people in the Jones County area know Sen. Brown, but his life – and legislative legacy – is one worth knowing. I hope to pay him one last respect by sharing a few memories.

It’s hard for me to imagine a legislative session without Sen. Brown – Terry, as he was known. His bass voice booming through the hallways, Terry wasn’t one for quiet entrances. As a wide-eyed teenager, I didn’t know what to think about him when we first met several years ago. Is this guy crazy? Does he always yell? Can he really help steer legislation through committee?

The answer, I soon learned, was yes. He was in fact a little crazy (and proud of it, you see); he always shouted (Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves says Terry never had an “inside voice”); and his ability to garner support for legislation was virtually unmatched.

He was one-of-a-kind in every sense of the phrase.

Terry represented Lowndes County in the Legislature, serving most recently as the Miss. Senate’s unanimous choice for President Pro Tempore, which is a Latin term that basically means he was second in command. Prior to the Senate, Terry served in the Miss. House from 1988 to 2000.

I got to work with Terry when he was chairman of the old Fees, Salaries, and Administration Committee (it’s been reconstituted as the Accountability, Efficiency, and Transparency Committee). Terry’s committee oversaw bills that would remove agencies from the regulations of the State Personnel Board, which Gov. Barbour thought – and Terry agreed – would help streamline government.

Terry would make sure this bill passed his committee and the full Senate floor, only to watch it die in the then-Democrat majority House of Representatives – year after year after year. No matter, though, because he thought it was the right thing to do. Let’s shove it in their face, he would say. Let’s make them answer questions as to why they don’t want to save taxpayer dollars.

Terry could be abrasive, that’s for sure. But his brusque nature was rather endearing once you got to know him. On more than one occasion did I hear someone exclaim: That senator just cussed me! On more than one occasion did I hear the response: Who, that giant fellow over there? Yeah, that’s Terry. I think it means he likes you.

Terry liked to give people nicknames. For coastal residents, the nickname was simply “fish-eaters.” The nickname caught on, and now several coastal residents (particularly legislators) refer to themselves as “fish-eaters.”

Terry referred to me as “nerd.” Everything I did was prefaced by “nerd”: Nerd reading, nerd walking, etc. Everything I used was a nerd utensil: Nerd pencil, nerd pen, and, my personal favorite, nerd canister (this was in reference to a water bottle I used).

He called the shots just as he saw them, and he was usually right.

Politics were important to Terry, and he was as conservative as they come. Yet his jovial nature and unique sense of humor endeared him to his legislative colleagues on both sides of the aisle. His funeral was attended by as many Democrats as Republicans – one last testament to the bipartisan nature of his engaging personality.

Gov. Barbour told the Clarion Ledger that he knew Terry since the Fordice administration, that he was one of his most faithful supporters, and that Terry supported him even in times “when maybe his own inclination was not the same as mine.”

Terry was one of the most loyal people I knew. He was loyal to Gov. Barbour, loyal to Lt. Gov. Reeves, loyal to friends, and most of all, loyal to his constituents back home. He’s a big reason why Columbus has had so much economic development success in recent years, including major employers like PACCAR, Airbus, and Severstal.

One of my favorite stories about Terry was told during his funeral. Lt. Gov. Reeves recalled that Terry helped him on the campaign trail several years ago. One day they were speaking at a Republican women’s club, and Terry introduce the candidate as follows:

“Now listen here. They made a mistake in letting you women vote, but as long as you’re going to vote, I hope you’ll pick my man Tate Reeves for Treasurer.”

It reminds me of what Gov. Barbour said: Terry could be “so impolitic, but was always fun and funny. And if he thought of something and it was politically incorrect, he didn’t let that stop him from expressing it.”

Terry was a skilled legislator who was respected by his peers in both legislative chambers. He made friends easily, was liked by all, and was an institution unto himself.

Terry’s legislative seat will be filled and his position in the Senate will be taken. But Terry Brown – the man, the legislative legend, the legacy – will never be replaced.