Harbor Area Archives

David Stanton Brown known as “Dave” was born 12/13/1947 in Detroit Michigan. He was the beloved son of Charlotte and Bernard “Bernie” Brown and younger brother to William Brown. They moved to San Diego when Dave was just 1 year old and began their life there. Dave became a Boy Scout at a young age, and from a report card that was found, he was a great student but a little chatty in class. He loved football and surfing over the years; he ended up breaking his nose at least 7 times playing football.

He played high school football and received a full ride to Arizona State. After one year, he decided to return home because he missed his family. He transferred to Long Beach State and married Donna Marie Kelley in 1968. They made a home in Seal Beach while Dave was attending college and working at the restaurant, Walt’s Warf. After returning from Oregon, most of Dave’s life was in the Seal Beach/Long Beach community of AA.

Dave told stories of his football games and the great friends that he met through playing football. One of Dave’s proudest stories was the Rose Bowl story. He played at the Rose Bowl Stadium in the Rose Bowl game but at the time known as the Pasadena Bowl. It that game, Dave said he played the best he ever had, and as his eyes lit up, he would say that it was an amazing experience even though they didn’t win. He always wore his Rose Bowl ring with great pride.

After college he was a history teacher and an assistant football coach at Bellflower High School. He taught there until Dave and Donna moved to Cottage Grove, Oregon in 1979 with their three young girls. For a short time, he explored the life of a farmer until he went back to teaching and was the head football coach at the local high school.

The family moved back to Southern California in 1985 and for the next five years Dave coached again at Bellflower High. He then got into real estate and became a business owner as a mortgage broker. He married his second wife, Robin Rae Roemer in 1994, and they welcomed their son Trever Dillon Brown (Touch Down Brown) in 1995. Dave loved living in Seal Beach and cherished be close to the beach on a daily basis and embraced fatherhood with joy.

In 2015, David started focusing on healthy living, launching his blog about staying active and eating well. He was passionate and curiously researching longevity, nutrition, and lifestyle with the same determination he brought to other areas of his life.

Dave did return to teaching in 2017, first as substitute teacher and wrestling referee, and in 2020 he took a full-time teaching position at Canyon Springs High School in Las Vegas and commented in recent years that it gave him purpose and joy.

In 11/19/1983, Dave joined Alcoholics Anonymous. He was very active and well known in AA, the Harbor Area H&I committee and the Southern California H&I of AA. He remained sober for the rest of his life – 41 years. He was chair of the H&I committee, the H&I conference.

He was instrumental in bringing Harbor Area H&I back from collapse when personalities pushed it to the brink of dissolving in the mid 2000’s. Dave supervised and participated in Prison panels carrying the message to the inmates. He dedicated much of his life to supporting others on their path to recovery. One of his great joys was watching illiterate friends learn to read by using their AA big book.

As was explained he was especially active in Hospitals and Institutions (H&I), bringing the message of the 12-step program and sobriety to those who otherwise might not have had the chance to hear it. Dave was a pillar in Alcoholics Anonymous.

Dave sponsored people who achieved decades of sobriety, not just from alcohol and drug free but more importantly receiving an incredible spiritual life. Dave and his AA friends participated in H&I by visiting many different jails throughout his years in AA including Tehachapi State Prison and Calipatria State Prison.

He guided his sponsees and other AA’s on how to successfully carry the message behind the walls. These were all day events, often driving over 100 miles to go to these panels and events.

Dave always enjoyed the meetings before the meetings and the meetings after the meetings. Dave’s late sponsor in Seal Beach was Harry Liston, a legend in the AA community. His grand sponsor co-founded the Thursdays AA club in Sunset Beach.

After Harry’s stroke, Dave organized AA meetings every Thursday night at Harry’s home. These meetings were carried on for many, many years until Harry’s death, bringing joy and comfort to Harry’s widow. It was a very tight fellowship which was enjoyed by all. Dave is sorely missed in the AA community.

Over the last few years, Dave had taken many great adventures including his spring break trips in Guaymas, Mexico. Dave conceded and obtained a GPS device, identifying HIS location, as his kids were worried about his decades old heart condition and his hikes in the desert. He finally got the device after getting his car high centered on a rock on some o-road trail and having to walk to a local farm for assistance.

Two years ago, he took a trip to London to visit his daughter Summer where they went on many adventures along the countryside via train and visited many famous sites. A few months before his passing, Dave was able to vacation to Bonaire. He was able to go on a snorkeling adventure with Trevor experiencing a whole different culture and seeing the beautiful water and tasting all the amazing food. Dave was also able to go on many camping adventures in Colorado with his daughter Heather. She and her husband are sober by in large due to Dave’s example in his sobriety. They played many games of golf together.

Whenever he was out hiking in Las Vegas on the weekends, he sent hiking videos to share the views of the desert and mountains to friends and family. He was also able to take advantage of adventures with his girlfriend Sharleen. They enjoyed going to see Hamilton, visiting the Grand Canyon and exploring new cuisines. In the last decade of his life, David Brown became a dedicated member at the Las Vegas AA community and found spiritual peace with the Las Vegas Buddhist Sangha. This is where he found a deep meaning in spiritual practice and had recently begun teaching a class in Las Vegas, something he was deeply excited about, as he was able to combine his love for sharing and exploring his journey of self-discovery. Dave will always be a legend in the AA community and will always have a place in the hearts of those who knew him.

Dave’s life was full of rich experiences. It brings us great comfort to know that he was surrounded by this community, people he loved and people who loved him.