WASHINGTON – Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi today announced the passing of former secretary Jesse Brown, who died Aug. 15 in Washington after a long illness.
“Jesse Brown was the veteran’s veteran — a man of unceasing commitment and advocacy for all who have served their country, especially those who were disabled in service,” said Principi. “He leaves many friends at VA and throughout the veterans community. We are saddened not only by this personal loss by also by the stilling of his staunch voice and good counsel.”
Brown, 58, was disabled by enemy fire while serving as a Marine in Vietnam. He was appointed Secretary of Veterans Affairs in January 1993 and served until July 1997.
In his four-and-a-half years as leader of the second largest Cabinet agency, Brown earned a reputation as a dynamic manager. Under his leadership, the Department of Veterans Affairs decentralized its health care structure, began to offer more outpatient, primary care services and expanded benefits for former prisoners of war and for veterans who suffered from Agent Orange and Gulf War-related illnesses.
The former secretary is also credited with increasing VA services to homeless veterans with a grants program and expanding programs for women veterans and veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Brown took pride in calling himself the Secretary “for” Veterans Affairs. At his retirement ceremony outside VA headquarters, attended by hundreds of wellwishers, Brown said he had won several battles with Congress because, as he said, “We hold the moral high ground.”
In a call for VA employees to be more sensitive to veterans’ needs, he ordered training called “Putting Veterans First.”
Before coming to VA, he spent a career with the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), serving as executive director of its Washington, D.C., office from 1989 to 1993. After leaving VA, he worked as a consultant with a Washington-based firm.
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