Don Browne's Obituary
Don Browne of Clearwater, Florida passed away peacefully at home on June 14, 2026, surrounded by his family.
Don was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 21, 1941. He was raised by his mother and beloved grandmother, whose cooking and baking began a lifelong love of baked sweets and treats. He graduated in 1959 from Edison High School and enrolled in University of Minnesota, where he graduated with a degree in Metallurgical Engineering in 1966. He married Gloria Stasik on June 20, 1964. While in Minneapolis, he played guitar, bass, and banjo in the band Four of a Kind. They were well known in Northeast Minneapolis for playing weddings, parties and hen weighs.
After a short stint with Sunstrand Aviation in Rockford, IL, he worked at Honeywell in Minneapolis until he, Gloria, and sons Michael and Stephen were relocated by Honeywell to Clearwater. In 1978, he began working with E-Systems (eventually Raytheon) in St Petersburg until his retirement in 1999. He ran the failure analysis lab and it fit his personality as a constant problem solver.
In retirement, Don and Gloria did lots of traveling in the United States and throughout Europe. Don volunteered for AARP doing taxes and also was active in Faith and Action Stronger Together (FAST) and St Vincent de Paul Society. He was a parishioner at St Cecelia’s and St Catherine’s in Clearwater. He loved gardening, fixing things, and tinkering. He always had a project and always had the latest gadgets. The Brownes were the first ones to have a microwave, VCR, flat screen TVs, and high-speed-internet. From his mother, he inherited a love of animals, especially cats. He had a very soft spot in his heart for his grand dogs, Kirby and Charlotte.
Don is preceded in death by mother Elaine Browne, grandmother Maria Palffy, brother-in-law Greg Stasik and sister-in-law Mary Jo Stasik. He is survived by his loving wife of 62 years Gloria. Sons Michael (Karen) and Stephen (Jennifer), granddaughters Kathryn (Luc) and Carolyn (Nic) and great grandson Henry Michael, sister-in-law Bonnie Stasik and nieces Lisa and Amy (Joe).
Donations can be made to St Vincent de Paul Society at St. Cecelia’s or St. Catherine’s Parish or St. Vincent de Paul Community Kitchen https://www.svdpclearwaterfl.org/more-than-meals
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