Ben Brown, age 65, of Grinnell, died on Monday, April 20, 2015, at University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa. A celebration of his life will be held 10:30 a.m., Friday, April 24, 2015, at the United Methodist Church in Grinnell with Rev. Rose Blank officiating. Interment will be in Hazelwood Cemetery in Grinnell. Visitation will begin at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday at the Smith Funeral Home in Grinnell with the family present to greet friends from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Memorial contributions may be designated to the Ben R. Brown Memorial Fund, mailed in care of the Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 368, Grinnell, Iowa 50112. Bennett Ray Brown was born on November 7, 1949, in Grinnell, Iowa to Ellis LeRoy Brown and Ruth Edith (Gross) Brown. He was raised on the family farm northeast of Grinnell and graduated from Grinnell High School in 1967. He honorably served in the United States Marine Corp during the Vietnam War. He graduated from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa in 1975, earning a BA degree in Biology. He was united in marriage to Mary VanErsvelde on August 29, 1970 at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Brooklyn, Iowa. To this union were born 3 daughters, Jenny, Mandy and Kari. Their marriage later ended in divorce. On December 20, 1986, Ben was united in marriage to Carol Lea McCain at the United Methodist Church in Grinnell. The couple lived in Grinnell. Over the years Ben farmed, did carpentry, worked at Manatts, and raised livestock, mink, quail, and honey bees. More recently Ben had run a greenhouse and sold produce from his gardens. Ben was a family man and an outdoorsman. His family described him as a kid at heart, kind-hearted, and someone who loved to joke with others. He loved to cook and was famous for his Reuben sandwiches. Over the years he enjoyed trapping, fishing, hunting as well as tending to his garden. His other enjoyments included woodworking and traveling. Those left to honor his memory are his wife of 28 years, Carol L. Brown of Grinnell; 3 daughters, Jenny (Robert) Riedel of Marengo, Iowa, Mandy (Thad) Neuman of Johnston, Iowa, and Kari (Trent) Klein of Malcom, Iowa; 9 grandchildren, Sarissa, Scott, Bryan and Makenze Riedel, Perry, Trey, and Landry Neuman, and Sadie and Griffin Klein; sister, Judy Cook of Grinnell; and 2 brothers, Rodney (Sue) Brown of Los Cruces, New Mexico and James (Judith) Brown of Grinnell. He was preceded in death by his parents, Ellis Brown in 2003 and Ruth Brown in 2005.