Frank Brewer

On March 2, 2014 Frank Brewer passed away at Holston Valley Medical Center after a recent illness. Never willing to be idle a single minute (unless he scheduled that minute) he was still working full-time at age 76.

Frank had an insatiable zest for life which he pursued methodically and with an excellence that everyone who knew him both recognized and came to expect. While Frank felt he led a narrow life, those close to him would argue that it was a focused life. Through that focus he left his mark on the landscape and in the lives of all he touched, always striving to create beauty for others to see and enjoy.

His parents moved from Hawkins County, TN to Kingsport when Frank was very young. It was they who exerted the most influence in his young life, preparing him to be a productive, honest, hardworking father, husband, and member of the community. They were always supportive of his interests and continually encouraged him. As a child Frank liked airplanes so much that his parents would take him to the airport on Sundays to watch them take off and land. So it was no surprise to them when at age 19 he earned his pilot's license, making his first solo flight in a J3 Piper Cub. Flying remained one of his greatest joys in life. He later learned to fly a hot air balloon which he and his son Harold often flew during the early years of Fun Fest.

Frank was also passionate about sailing, putting the first full knell sailboat on Lake Watauga in 1972, and spending many pleasurable week-ends on the lake with Harold and his daughter Karen.

While his passion for flying and sailing intrigued him, he was best known for his vocation, the designing and building of all types of structures.

Throughout his career he and his company designed and built commercial and industrial structures from California to Connecticut. In Kingsport he designed, built and renovated structures for Tennessee Eastman, Mead Corporation, Wellmont, Indian Path Hospital and Eastman Credit Union branch banks. However he often reminded that "teams build buildings, I just provide leadership." He believed that everyone deserved to be a winner and given the right encouragement and leadership, they could be. He continually thanked and praised every individual who worked on his projects, for their talent, cooperation and efforts.

In addition to promoting company teamwork Frank consistently gave back to the community which had provided the environment for his success. He joined several community organizations, including the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce, which he served as president in 1979. He also served on the Board of the Kingsport Chamber Foundation and was its first president; and in 2009 he was recognized by the Chamber with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

It was while he was active with the Chamber that the idea of Fun Fest was born, and he served as its first Chairman. In fact Frank, with the help of Tom Dickens (and their wives of course) mapped out Fun Fest's direction for many years to come.

He also served on the Boards of Holston Valley Hospital and Medical Center (and its Executive Committee), First National Bank of Sullivan County, First American Bank in Kingsport, Kingsport Chamber of Commerce, the Kingsport Community Chest (now United Way), and Junior Achievement of Kingsport.

He served as an advisory member of the East Tennessee State University Foundation; as Fund Raising Chairman to establish The Cecile Quillen Chair of Medicine, Quillen College of Medicine of ETSU; and in 1980 as Chairman of the United Way Commercial Division. He later served as a United Way General Chairman and in 1979 and 1981 received the "Kingsport Times-News Award" for Distinguished Community Service.

Frank served as president of Rentenbach and Wright, Inc., as vice president of Mark Freeman & Associates, president of Descon Management Consultants, Inc. and Manager of Business Development at Little & Adams, Inc.; and in 2011 launched FB Brewer Consulting Co. He proudly served as the city of Kingsport's owner's representative in the construction of the Aquatic Center, and as a consultant to Eastman Credit Union. Having designed the current branches, his latest ECU project was the construction of a branch in Longview, Texas, which opened in December, 2013. A more recent client was Pal's where he worked on their Erwin facility. He was, in fact eagerly waiting to continue consulting on future facilities when he fell ill.

He was a member and past president of the Tri-Cities Chapter of Associated General Contractors, Armco Dealer Council, and Southern Industrial Development Council.

Frank had a keen sense of color, proportion and shapes which served him well in his design/build career, but later in life he fine-tuned the artistic side of that talent and studied watercolor painting. Of course he approached this as he did everything in life, in a totally focused, methodical, and exhaustive way. In 1996, he began painting, mostly portraits and flowers, and won several awards in local art contests.

While Frank's work, community service and personal interests were best known to people, most important to him was his family. He unceasingly thought about and provided for their every convenience and interest. He had learned the value of a strong family from his parents and did everything he could to pass along those values combined with the necessary love and discipline to his children, and to his stepchildren and grandchildren. He always thought of their well-being and how he could help them, and it is for that passion, concern and care that his family will always cherish and remember him.

Frank was preceded in death by his parents, Lois Davis Brewer and Norman Brewer, and his sister Patricia Ann Brewer.

He will be greatly missed by his wife of nearly 33 years, Joe Ann Brewer of Kingsport; his son Harold Brewer of Charlotte, NC; and daughter Karen Crawford, her husband Jeff and son Justin of Ringgold, GA; as well as his wife's children, Richard Hartley, wife Elizabeth and daughter Katie of Pleasant View, TN; Arthur Lindsey and wife Jackie, her son Victor, his ex-wife Nancy, and their children Sarah Thomsen and husband Ryan, and Emily of Charlotte, NC; and Cecilia Chase and husband Tom, and children Shannon and Jennifer of Duluth, GA; and last, but not least, his faithful dogs J3 and Gulfstream.

At Frank's request, he will be cremated; and rather than a traditional funeral his family will receive friends and relatives in the Cattails Room of Meadowview Conference Center on Saturday, March 8 from 4 to 6 P.M.

The family expresses their gratitude to the nursing staff of HVMC for their excellent care during Frank's illness, as well as the Wellmont Radiation Therapy Department and Kingsport Hematology and Oncology.

In lieu of flowers donations in his honor may be made to St. Jude's Children Hospital, Children International or the charity of one's choice.