Senate honors longtime state capital reporter Fred Brown with floor tribute

The Colorado Senate opened a moment of personal privilege on May 7 with a tribute to Frederick Winfield "Fred" Brown, a longtime capital reporter and columnist the chamber said "helped countless journalists and legislators find their bearings in this very building." S4 (Lawmaker) described Brown's half-century presence on the political scene and read a Senate memorial to be spread across the Senate Journal.

The speaker noted Brown's work at the Bent County Democrat and the Boulder Daily Camera before joining The Post in 1963, his role on boards that championed public access to government, and the regular Friday column many in the capitol read. S4 said, "Institution to which we belong is stronger because of his reporting and advocacy." Family members and former colleagues — including Brown's wife, Mary Brown, and press colleagues — were recognized on the floor and invited to stand.

The Senate adopted a motion to spread the memorial in the journal by voice vote and recessed briefly so members could greet the family and take photographs holding reproductions of a Fred Brown mask placed on desks in the press room. The chair (S2) led the applause and thanked family members for attending. The Senate then returned to its schedule.