In Honor of David M. Brown - Astronaut, Gymnast, Private Pilot
Astronaut David (Dave) Brown died tragically in the Columbia Shuttle disaster in 2003. Dave was a beloved man of many talents ranging from athletics to academics and graduated from William & Mary in 1978 with a bachelor’s in biology. While attending W&M he was an athlete on the gymnastics team, but did you know he also accomplished flight training at JGG and eventually earned his Private Pilot Certificate. During his time in college he also put his gymnastics passion to use as an acrobat in the Circus Kingdom. Post-graduation, Dave went on to earn his medical degree and became a naval flight surgeon before becoming a NASA astronaut. Since his death, Williamsburg Gymnastics has created the Astronaut Dave Brown Memorial Meet to honor his love for the sport.
This year, we were lucky enough to receive an invitation to sponsor such an amazing event given JGG’s ties to Dave Brown’s aviation career and background. We were honored to revive awareness of his history with JGG, and W&M and we celebrated his legacy at the 2023 meet by inspiring young people to actively pursue their dreams, both in aviation or beyond.?
For more information about the meet visit: https://www.williamsburggymnastics.com/dave-brown-meet?
Learn more about Dave Brown: