W L Lyons Brown Jr

W.L. Lyons Brown Jr., former CEO of Brown-Forman Corp., died June 9 2024 at the age of 87. Brown, retired chair of the board and chief executive officer, was a fourth-generation Brown family member, and was the great-grandson of founder, George Garvin Brown, In 1972 he became executive vice president and director of worldwide marketing and three years later, was elected CEO and president. In 1983, Brown became chair of the Board of Directors and CEO. He completed his tenure as chair in 1995 and as a member of the board in 1996. In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed Brown as the U.S. Ambassador to Austria. Brown is survived by his wife Alice Cary Farmer, sister Ina Bond, three children, Lyons III (Susanna), their three children, Renee Carpenter (Douglas), Caroline Fries (Willis) and George; Cary Epstein (Steve), their son Sam; Stuart (Joanna), their four children Stuart Jr., Keeling (Holly), Clara, and Lyons and two great-grandsons, Read Lyons Fries and Cato Douglas Glover Carpenter III.