Dean Brower

Dean Brower, 51

Died: September 12, 2008
He was a true believer. If he had survived this accident and had no legs . . . he would have wheeled himself onto the train.
— Kim Brower, wife, on her husband's dedication to Metrolink
Brower, a father of three children with disabilities, owned Pulse Drumming with his wife, Kim. They started the Ventura business, which teaches dance and percussion, so they could work together. In 2005, Brower was riding a Metrolink train to work and got off right before it collided with a sport utility vehicle near Glendale, hit another train and derailed, killing 11 people. A "Celebration of Life Party" will be held Sept. 28, 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at the Arnaz Program Center, 155 Sulphur Mountain Road, Ventura.
 Permalink  Delicious  Digg  Facebook  Twitter

18 memories of Dean

I am in shock to hear of Dean's passing. Kim and Dean Brower are owners of Pulse Drumming in Ventura Ca. I had been out of town and received via e mail from Kim. I have no words as I sit here typing this Kim except love, support, courage in your time of deep deep sorrow. I met Dean once, a beautiful loving person. May your family find peace today, may the comfort of God cover you and hold you in this time of loss. My drums are silent they drum no music. For the silent is sorrow, and pain for you, Kim.

I lite my candle for Dean and Kim and their family.
I pray that peace will comfort them.
Let us all pray for Gods Hand to hold this beautiful family as one, as they travel into sorrow.
Always remebering the love of this wonderful person
Always remebering that God and his Angels are with Dean.
May you find peace in the coming days
May you always know that we all love you and our prayers are with you today.
God holds us
God gives us strenght
I love you Kim
(2 drums for peace
nancy m)

— Nancy Mauthe
September 14, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.

Kim, Lindsey,Billy and family,

Dean was always there;even for us. May you always remember and know he will be with you always -- He is now your true ANGEL! Our thoughts and prayers are with you. God and Dean are holding you now -- feel their strength. Their LOVE is never ending.

— Bobby and Mary Gene Ryan
September 14, 2008 at 1:17 p.m.

He will truly be missed by his little brother, sister-in-law and nieces & nephews. He will be missed but will be remembered.

— Don & Melinda Brower
September 14, 2008 at 7 p.m.

MY PRAYES AND THOUGHTS GO OUT TO DEAN'S FAMILY AND FRIENDS, I DIDN'T KNOW HIM. BUT MY PRAYES ARE WITH YOU. GOD BLESS YOU ALL..ANA

— ANA GARCIA
September 15, 2008 at 10:04 a.m.

My prayers and thoughts are with you. I injoyed working with Dean at BWRP. He was a kind and caring man who will be trully missed. May God shine down on you and comfort you in this time of deep sorrow.

— Jeffrey DeCoite
September 15, 2008 at 3:16 p.m.

Above all else I knew Dean Brower as a dedicated father and husband. We got to know each other more in the past 3-4 months than in any other time we worked together. Dean and I shared stories about our families and we came to discover that we had some things in common. Dean shared with me his deep love and commitment for his wife and children and he talked about broadening his experience and education to better himself and provide more for his family. Although his life may have presented him with more challenges than most I feel that Dean was an amazing man to, along with Kim, rise up to meet those challenges with such love and dedication. On top of everything, because of their passion for an idea, to open Pulse Drumming is simply amazing. That could not have been easy but hearing Dean talk about it and looking at their website and community calendar, it's clear it is a great success for them and the communities they serve. Dean always had time to listen and he took a caring interest in my family. I miss him.

— Bradley Davis
September 15, 2008 at 4 p.m.

MY CONDOLENCE ARE FOR THE FAMILY AND FRIENDS. GOD BLESS YOU

— CONNIE FIELDS
September 15, 2008 at 5:06 p.m.

Thank you for all your love and support to our family during this time of transition. We are so blessed to have such amazing friends and family.

The loss of my husband will be difficult, but I find strength in my wonderful children, family and friends.

There are so many that have been touched by this horrible accident, please keep them in your prayers. The rescue workers, volunteers, red cross, LA County Mayors staff, and the 100's of everyday heroes helped to make the 20+ hours of waiting, praying into a bearable process.

We bonded with many of the families that have also lost loved ones, we were one of six families at the end. It is horrible to lose any loved one, but the loss of a child is pretty near unbearable. Those families left after us where all parents awaiting word, some had to go to the hospital to identify their teenage daughters. Those amazing parents took time away from their grief and suffering to reach out to us after we made that horrible march to the clergy office.

My father and I wiped our tear stained faces, promptly placed our sunglasses in place, leaned on each other and planned to make a bee line for our car. We opened the door and there stood all of those amazing families, peace officers, volunteers, firemen, and the Mayors staff. They had left there safe Auditorium Room and walked that walk
with us, we didn't even know they where behind us. The biggest group hug began and the healing began.

A kind Sheriff named Paul followed us all the way home, and our pastor and small group joined us at home to break the news to our family. The amazing support has continued.

Broken hearts are nothing compared to those 100's that are and will be physically broken for a long, long time. Please keep them and their famiies in your prayers. We too have been through that process and after the dust settles, the media hype dies down, they will still need all the good will we can collectively give them.

Let us never forget God made us a people of choice. Our choices in life can and do impact others, all those who belong to this amazing network have the power to create change, to motivate and uplift each other...Dean believed in creating change through bringing cultures together helping to teach that no matter the color of our skin,
religious preference, or economic status that being true and understanding others was a path to peace.

The best way we can honor the loss of this amazing man (ok I am a bit biased) is to walk our path with our heads held high, and think of the impact of our choices.

We look to have a celebration of life party the Sunday after next. I will post the time and place as soon as we have them.

Thank you dear friends...Kim

— Kim Brower
September 16, 2008 at 1:07 a.m.

Kim...When Armando called Sunday night to tell Trevor about his dad, we were all so sad. We only met Dean once, when he took Armando, Billy and Trevor to Universal Studio's last year. It was the first time Trevor had ever been there and he had so much fun..Our hearts go out to you and your family in this time of sorrow...

— The Edwards Family
September 16, 2008 at 10:06 a.m.

To Kim, Lindsey, Bill, Armando & Family,
My heart and prayers are with you in abundance. I feel your pain and sorrow. Dean was a great man with some much love and kindness. Today he is reunited with his creator, God. Dean is and angel today looking over your beautiful family.
His spirit will live with us forever.

— Chris Borel
September 17, 2008 at 9:11 a.m.

Kim,

Your family shows an amazing display of connection to spirit
that grows more profound as you are thrown into the public light. Your programs based on rhythm instruments have offered a far reaching level of acceptance and pure fun for anyone who cares to participate, an extended family with enough love and acceptance for all. This legacy will continue to grow and serve as we now have confidence that a strong good spirit is always there.

I was shocked to hear of Dean's death. I couldn't imagine how you could manage the care of family, I couldn't imagine your group putting on a performance without him there to help. Now I realize he will be there, of course.

Love and Blessings,

Laudine Borges

— Laudine Borges
September 17, 2008 at 10:11 a.m.

Kim,
Although I did not know Dean well I did see his work in Ventura. After getting to know you, I realized that anyone who spent time with you and Dean was a better person for it. Our deepest regards go to you and your family. If there is anything we can do please let me know.

With great respect,
Sam Maxson
MegaSound Studios

— MegaSound Studios
September 17, 2008 at 2 p.m.

i know exactly how you feel, my father had passed in that accident, i will pray for him and the whole family. HUGS

— Mey Chao
September 19, 2008 at 9:26 a.m.

Dean Brower, the only Metrolink crash victim from Ventura, was chosen as VenturaParent.com's Dad of the Year 2008, shortly after Father's Day. He was an example for all of us, and I'm sure everyone who ever knew him or met him will feel the loss of this great man who put his family first. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to meet Dean on the day I gave him his award/prize: a $100 gift card. Kim told me he took his kids to the mall that day and had a wonderful time!

I would like to share with you the wonderful words his wife, Kim, wrote about him when she nominated him:

"One hundred words or less will never tell the story of this my amazing husband. Father of three children, all having very special needs. We have a son who had a stroke at age 4.5 months, a daughter who had a stroke at age 10, and we have adopted a young man with special needs. Our youngest son is wheelchair-bound and requires assistance with all of his needs. My husband never flinches; he has always been a part of the therapies, the daily care and taking care of that never-ending paperwork. All the while never forgetting he is his son, not a chore.

"Our daughter was in the hospital for six months and required very intensive therapies for many years. My husband worked full-time graveyards, took care of our son, the house and life so I could live in the hospital room with our daughter. When our son's best buddy needed a home and family, my husband, without hesitation, opened our door and welcomed him in.

"Although he commutes to Burbank daily for work, he still has managed to go back to school to complete a second major and find time to be a father, husband and son and co-owner of our business. Our family has truly been blessed with a man who believes in God and family first.

"You might have seen him, he's the guy pushing a wheelchair carrying a young man with a grin from ear to ear, next to him a 6-foot-4 young man walking with a swagger and a beautiful blonde walking with a white cane. He's the guy laughing and beaming with pride in the center of it all."

- Valerie Zeko, Ventura

— Valerie Zeko
September 19, 2008 at 11:04 a.m.

will be performing a tribute for DEAN AT OJAI FARMERS MKT. SUNDAY, HOPE TO MAKE CELEBRATION OF LIFE LATER IN THE DAY. WEN MEW

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/WENMEW1

— wen mew
September 25, 2008 at 10 p.m.

Though we all may have lost someone who is a big part of our lives and our hearts and we are not able to replace or fill that emptyness that our love ones have taken with them when they left this world. but i hope that maybe we all can come together and allow each other to come into each others lives since i know that we all share the same pain. when my father passed in that metrolink 2008 crash my life has not been the same and its been very difficult, my father left behind his wife and 5 children and so many grand children, and we all miss and love him so much but talkin about him with my family and remembering all the good times we had with him helps us with our pain of losing him. so i just would like to let you all know i am here if you need to talk or just someone to listen to you. my email is

chaomey82@gmail.com

my hearts and prayers go out to you.

— mey chao
October 1, 2008 at 9:40 a.m.

We are so sorry for your loss. We did not know Dean but know the heartache and sorrow you must be feeling as we lost our son Christopher in the accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with your family at this time. May the memories you have sustain you through this most difficult time. Donna and Roy Aiken

— Donna & Roy Aiken
October 4, 2008 at 1:30 p.m.

Please know that all of you are in my prayers and those of my family. I was on the train as well, and know that we lost some truly wonderful and unique Souls. May God Grant you comfort in knowing that they are on a wonderful journey but will one day be with us again. J. Freel

— John Freel
January 17, 2009 at 12:49 p.m.

Share a memory of Dean.

  Required
  Optional
Email addresses are not republished or used for marketing purposes.
Keep in mind
  • The Times initially mispelled the name of Michael Hammersley and Beverly Mosley.
  • The coroner's office reported a 26th victim the afternoon of Sept. 15, but a few hours later said the tally was 25.

Chatsworth Metrolink Crash is the Los Angeles Times' database of fatalities from the Sept. 12, 2008, train collision.
Advertisement

Latest Numbers

25 dead

135 injured

About the Data Desk

This page was created by the Data Desk, a team of reporters and Web developers at The Times.