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Sept. 22, 1946 – July 18, 2023

NATCHEZ — Martha “Mot” Cross Brown, 76, passed away at home in Pass Christian on July 18, 2023, after fighting her battle against dementia for over 16 years. Services will be held at 11 a.m. on July 28, 2023, at Parkway Baptist Church in Natchez, MS. Laird’s Funeral Home will oversee the graveside service at Natchez City Cemetery.

Mot was born in Meridian, MS, on Sept. 22, 1946, to Ruth Hill Cross and John Patrick Cross. She grew up in Natchez in a house filled with children, which included five sisters and a brother. When Mot was 17, she began dating the love of her life, John Brown, and the two eventually married in 1969.

Mot was an avid volunteer and a passionate protector of children. She was a member of Junior Auxiliary, through which she became a tireless volunteer at the Natchez Children’s Home. She was also a mentor through Girls in Action at First Baptist Church, a docent at D’Evereux, and a participant in the Natchez Pilgrimage for many years.

Mot and John, along with their two daughters, moved to the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 1984. Mot continued her volunteer work with children through Junior Auxiliary and was on the Board of Directors at Bayou Bluff Tennis Club, where she enjoyed many years of friendship with members of her tennis team, the Killer Bees. She also loved to spend her time on interior design, helping to redesign and redecorate homes.

Above all things, Mot is remembered as a devoted, exceptional mother and grandmother. She made birthdays, Christmas, and life in general magical because of her love of children, her vivid imagination, her incredible creativity, and her natural artistic talent. She loved hosting slumber parties, being the cheerleading coach, taking kids shopping, making earrings, bows, and costumes, and creating fun and unique experiences for kids. She was kind, generous, loving, and always smiling. She seemed driven by a desire to make the world an exciting, safe, and happy place for children. She often said how much she loved hearing the laughter of her girls and their friends.

Mot is preceded in death by her parents; her sisters, Yvette Flowers and Patricia Brann, and her brother, Robert Edwin Cross.

She is survived by her loving husband of 54 years, John Brown of Pass Christian, MS; two daughters, Stephanie Brown (Jonathan) of Petal, MS and Melanie Brown (Andrew Jessup) of Chicago, IL; cherished friend who was loved and treated as a daughter, Jane Varner (Matt) of Gulfport, MS; grandchildren, Hannah Blythe and Brooks Foil, both of Petal, MS, and Ava Grace and Joseph Varner of Gulfport, MS; sisters, Elizabeth Calhoun (Nathan), Camille “Boosie” Morgan (Mike), and Diane Willard (David); brother-in-law, Milton Brann; sister-in-law, Marti Wiggins (Billy); and many nieces and nephews. She also leaves behind her extraordinary and dear friend, Talaresha Willis, who never left Mot’s side and treated her as her own mother with unconditional love. In addition, she will be deeply missed by her loyal canine companion, Charlie Brown.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Humane Society of South Mississippi, Shriners Hospitals for Children, or Parkway Baptist Church. Trinity Funeral Services is honored to serve the Brown family in their time of need and asks that you remember them in your thoughts and prayers through the days ahead.