Well-known Te Kūiti man Baven Brown was remembered by family and friends last week after the 51-year-old passed away last Tuesday.
Baven Brown scored one final try at Rugby Park last Thursday, as hundreds gathered in Te Kūiti to celebrate the life of one of the Waitete club’s most popular figures.
More than 400 people filled Waitete Rugby Football Club to remember Brown’s life, following the 51-year-old’s death on Tuesday last week.
Arriving at Rugby Park, where he scored so many tries over his 306 premier games since debuting for Waitete in 1995, his family took him on one last trip down the field before heading to the club rooms.
Well-known Te Kūiti man Baven Brown (middle) was remembered by family and friends last week after the 51-year-old passed away last Tuesday.
Brown, also fondly known as B, B Brown and Glamour, was remembered as the life of the party, characterised by his trademark ‘bling’ jewellery and signature V haircut, ankle socks and a boombox always nearby.
His unique style could be seen in his rugby through a flamboyant skill-set influenced by his touch background, leading to the behind-the-back and no-look passes he became famous for.
The fullback also played 79 games for the King Country Rams between 1999 and 2007 and scored 13 first-class tries, and was also well-known for playing touch, basketball, social soccer, twilight netball and squash.
King Country Rugby Union (KCRU) chairman Jason Church, who played rugby with Brown and worked alongside him at Universal Beef Packers for many years, spoke of his popularity and the fun he brought to the team.
“Everybody would wait to see what van B. Brown would get into. You’d have about 15 guys squashed into this van with his big boombox and the poor sober driver in the other van driving home with all the gear bags. It was good fun and we never got in much trouble,” Church said.
“Wolfy made a comment about B’s gap in his front teeth and B turned around and went bang and knocked his tooth out – ‘Who’s got the gap now bro?’. There was a bit of laughing and then you’d end up in town and the tooth’s pushed back in. An hour or two later, everyone’s hugging it out and best mates again on Tuesday,” he said.
But aside from the music and laughs, Brown became known for his loyalty and commitment to the people he cared for, particularly his family and rugby club.
“Today we’ve lost a good mate, but you his family have lost so much more. Thank you for sharing your husband, Dad and koko with us, we’re all better for knowing him,” Church said.
KCRU president Paul Mitchell, who played with and coached Brown, said the character he showed was something young people should aspire to.
“We used to go out to the Maōri blocks out at Benneydale and do the crutching, and that fulla was always first there. He wasn’t first there by five minutes, he was probably near half an hour earlier. He was never at the front, but he was always out the back doing the hard yards and directing traffic and having a lot of fun with his music,” Mitchell said.
“If today’s generation ever wanted to look at something, they should look at this fulla and what he did and his commitment and his loyalty. He had great skills – why did he have great skills? Because he was fit. Why was he fit ? He did extra work, not only at training, but he did it behind the scenes and the other sports he played too,” he said.
Brown’s first Waitete premier coach John Lang said “there was nothing better than watching him running down the sidelines scoring tries”, and the news of his passing had shocked a lot of people.
“Baven’s going to heaven and there’s a guy up there called Pinetree (Sir Colin Meads) and he’s waiting at the gates with a jersey for him. Pinetree will say, ‘You’re in my team boy’,” Lang said.
Brown was buried beside his Dad Rob at the Mirumiru urupa at Marokopa last Friday.
He is survived by his devoted wife Milly, his children Kevin, Keisha and Baven Jnr and their partners Paygan, Zede and Staci, and his grandchildren Labryon, Khaleesi-Leigh, Amaiiah-Lee, Eva, Gianna, Satiivah-Hayze and Harley-Rose.
Well-known Te Kūiti man Baven Brown (middle) was remembered by family and friends last week after the 51-year-old passed away last Tuesday.
