Wayne State University Athletics

Brown, a native of Detroit, lettered four years on the men's tennis team at Wayne State University. During his four years, Brown was the only tennis player to win six President Athletic Conference (PAC) championships (three singles and three doubles titles) at the number one, two, and three positions. Brown earned varsity men's tennis letters in 1957, 1958 and 1959, and was named team captain in 1958 and 1959. One of the highlights in Brown's freshman year (1956) was that he became the only player at that time to win his singles match verses the highly ranked Kalamazoo College and the University of Michigan. After graduating from Wayne State in 1959 with a bachelor of science degree in Education and a master's degree in School Administration in 1962, Brown taught school first in Detroit then in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. In 1963, he left teaching school to become the first tennis professional for the Bloomfield Tennis House, which was the first public indoor tennis club built in Michigan. In 1967, Brown returned to teaching school and Brookside School - Cranbrook. While teaching and coaching for Cranbrook, he also was the tennis and squash professional for the Birmingham Athletic Club. Through the years, Brown was also the tennis professional at Pine Lake Country Club, the Bloomfield Open Hunt and the Cranbrook Tennis Club. After teaching at the Cranbrook schools for 32 years, he retired in June, 1999. Brown continues to coach the boy's varsity team and is the manager and tennis professional for the Cranbrook Tennis Club. Under Brown's coaching, the Cranbrook Boy's tennis teams have won 16 state championships and eight runner-up awards in his 29 years of coaching. Brown continues to facilitate coaches workshops and writes tennis articles for the Birmingham Eccentric newspapers. He takes great pride in organizing and running the novice charity tennis tournament for children. Brown's love of the game and years of service to tennis are reflected in the numerous awards he's received such as being named National Coach of the Year in 1996, three time Region 4 Coach of the year; 1993 Service Award for high school tennis; the 1993 Distinguished Service Award; 1986 Michigan Coach of the Year; 1976 Michigan Pro of the Year Award; inducted into the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association and the Cranbrook Tennis Club Hall of Fame and receiving a United States Patent for inventing a foam tennis trainer which is now used in hundreds of school districts. Brown and his wife, Susan, have five children (Bonnie, Matt, Dana, Don Jr., and Ann) and five grandchildren (Haley, Joshua, James, Riley, and Katherine) and split their time living the winters in Vero Beach, Florida and the summers in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.