WS Chronicle

By Felecia Piggott-Long, Ph.D.

The Phi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority hosted a 100th birthday party on Friday, Aug.16,  at the home of Marian Friende Brower to honor the year of her birth and the year that the Phi Omega Chapter was chartered – 1924. During the celebration, members of the sorority wore their jewel-covered 100-year eyeglasses to honor Marian Friende Brower Day on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, according to a proclamation signed by Mayor J. Allen Joines.

President Evelyn Acree designated Marian Brower as the “Centennial Soror” with a golden sign bearing that name.

“It is such an esteemed honor to be elected to represent such a dynamic group of women in a chapter that has been serving this community for 100 years,” said Acree. “Phi Omega Chapter was the first graduate chapter chartered in the state of North Carolina on Feb. 14, 1924. And we are so elated to share this centennial recognition.”

Soror Brower was honored with a proclamation from the City of Winston-Salem and from her alma mater, Winston-Salem Teachers College, now Winston-Salem State University. Thesha Woodley, director of alumni engagement at WSSU, and Denise Hartsfield from the City of Winston-Salem presented the proclamations in Brower’s honor.

“I thank all of my sorority sisters, and my children, my college mates and my high school mates. I am glad to see you. I am happy today!” said Brower.  “I love all of my guests, and we need to get together and do this more often.”

Brower was pleased to have her younger sister, Gwendolyn Greene, 94, at her side, along with Jeannette Lewis and other friends.

“Some of you want to know my secret. I say you have to be present. You have to be full of energy,” said Brower, who was born on Aug. 15, 1924.

Soror Annette Wilson wore a special pin that was designed by Marian Brower when new sorors were inducted into the Phi Omega Chapter. Salmon and apple green were used to design earrings and broach sets for new members. Brower often displayed her designs in craft shows at her home.

Marian Friende Brower was born in Kernersville  to Leone Matthews Friende and Walter Friende, the fifth of seven siblings. She is a  graduate of Carver High School and graduated from Winston-Salem Teachers College in 1945. She was crowned Miss Winston-Salem Teachers College in 1944. She married Robert Brower in 1947. She taught elementary and middle school for 30 years, including  at Lincoln Heights School in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, 14th Street Elementary School, Brown Intermediate, North Elementary, Walkertown Elementary, and Petree Elementary, among others. She was initiated into the Phi Omega Chapter in 1953, where she served as president in 1972, director of the Phi Omega Chorus and the Handbell Choir, chairperson for decorations, and opened her home for meetings before the Ivy Arms Clubhouse was constructed.

Brower and her husband, Robert,  were married for 67 years. They co-owned the Midget Supermarket 1 and 2 in Winston-Salem. Marian Brower was also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc,, Jack and Jill of America, Social Promoters, and Twigs, Inc. She has been an active member of the St. Paul United Methodist Church for many years.

Keeping up with her three children – Bobby Brower, Lynda Isabel, and Keith Brower – kept her engaged in her home, school, and the community. Bobby Brower pledged Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity in the fall of 1979 and the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Music Fraternity in the fall of 1976 at WSSU. In Chapel Hill Lynda Isabel is a golden soror. She joined at Spelman College and is currently involved in the Mu Omicron Omega Chapter. Keith Brower is a member of Omega Psi Phi Psi Phi Chapter, joining  in the spring of 1998 in Winston-Salem. He has also served as the primary caregiver for his mother since 2016.

“It is a blessing for my mother to still be here for this many years. I have learned a great deal from her. She is still teaching,” said Keith Brower. “It is a joy to be around her. She took good care of me and my siblings. This is a turnaround, but I count it as a blessing.”