BY IRIS B. HOLTON
Sentinel City Editor

Several months ago, Patrick Donahue, Postmaster General for the U. S. Postal Service, announced the possible closures of more than 3,700 post offices. The Produce Station on East Hillsborough Avenue was on that list, but an outcry from the community successfully lobbied to keep it open.

U. S. Rep. Kathy Castor was among those working to protect the Post Office. After it was saved from closure, Rep. Castor submitted a bill to have the facility renamed in honor of the late Reverend Abraham Brown, a popular East Tampa resident.

The U. S. House passed the bill in June, and the U. S. Senate passed earlier this month. Last Friday, President Barack Obama signed the bill into law. On Monday afternoon, Rep. Castor, family members of Rev. Brown, and other members of the community gathered for the dedication ceremony.

A Tampa native, Rev. Brown died nearly two years ago. After graduating from Middleton High School, he completed his education at Florida A & M University.

Rev. Brown returned to Middleton High School, his alma mater, where he taught classes. He served as an assistant football coach at Middleton High School and eventually became the Head Coach at Blake High School. He retired from Chamberlain High School as Dean of Boys.

In the mid 1970s, Rev. Brown launched a program to visit prisons and offer help to ex-offenders. As the Prison Crusade grew, Rev. Brown provided transportation to various prisons in the state so that family members could visit. The organization was later renamed “Abe Brown Ministries.”

Rev. Brown also served as the senior pastor at First Baptist Church of College Hill. He died in September 2010 after a bout with cancer. Rev. Brown was 83 years old.