After having to leave school to fight in the Vietnam War, Timothy Brown, a 77-year-old from Orangeburg County, South Carolina, has graduated from South Carolina State University.
Brown was a Compton Community College student in 1972 when he received a call to duty in the Vietnam War. He “faced danger” along the front lines of the conflict for ten months, he told WACH.
He worked as a chef, a firefighter, and a Greyhound bus driver for decades after returning to the US. He then had the opportunity to provide transportation for both the community leaders taking part in Dr Martin Luther King’s final march in Washington, D.C., in 1963, as well as blues music superstar BB King.
Brown’s experiences throughout the years ignited his passion to become a playwright. In 2018, the military veteran finally took an opportunity to pursue his passion as he joined the Department of Veteran Affairs Vocational Rehab program, which allowed him to attend SC State while still working.
After over three years of studying hard, Brown earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Drama from South Carolina State University.
Now, Brown is working to seek producers to hopefully bring to life the play he wrote based on his experience driving the bus from Los Angeles, California, to Washington DC, during the civil rights movement. He plans to help send underprivileged youth to college with the proceeds from the play’s ticket sales.
“As long as you have your health and strength, you’re never too old,” Brown said.
