Rochester man remembered as gifted female impersonator, nurse, cook and advocate for most vulnerable

Some workers at a Las Vegas assisted living facility clown around with Leonard Brown Jr. during the time he worked there as a chef earlier this year. (Courtesy photos)

At 6-foot-1 and around 400 pounds, Leonard C. Brown Jr. was a giant of a man, with a smile and personality and joy for life that matched his colossal size.

A drag queen who was comfortable with his gayness, the Rochester native was an exceptional singer in his own right, a musician who played tuba in his high school band, a CNA who had recently completed his master's in business and an accomplished chef, his specialty a mean chicken parmesan.

"He went to culinary arts in Dover during high school, and when he graduated in 1991 he got a grant and was accepted at a culinary arts school in Berlin (NH)," his mom, Debra Brown of Rochester, said on Thursday.

Leonard Brown Jr. performs as Mirage at one of his nightclub appearances, mostly done during fund-raisers for various charities.

But Debra Brown said he grew bored at the school and left after a semester or so because they were teaching him stuff he'd already learned in high school.

It was at Spaulding High about halfway through his senior year that Brown first came out about his being gay, something that friends and family generally accepted, his mom said.

After returning from Berlin he worked around at several area restaurants including the China Palace and during this time began working on his drag queen performances, of which he was very passionate.

"He loved to perform, he wasn't shy and he loved to sing," his mom said, adding he never lip synched and loved most to impersonate Cher.

In the early '90s Brown got the traveling bug, spending time in the Netherlands, Chicago and Florida, his mom said, before coming home to Rochester and becoming friends with a woman who lived in Hawaii.

Brown hated the cold New England winters, so he made the big move, living in Hawaii for five years where he performed numerous times in several night clubs under the stage name Mirage.

From left, Leonard Brown Jr. Debra Brown and Leonard Brown Sr. during a visit in Hawaii in 2008.

It was in Hawaii that he met the man who would become his longtime partner, but before he moved in with him, he came home for a year to figure out if it was really the right move.

"He came home and lived with me and his dad for about a year and a half, then decided it was the right thing to do, so he moved out to Las Vegas to be with him," his mom said. "He said he felt safe with him."

Moving to Vegas around 2005, Brown continued to hone his act while working as a CNA full time tending to the elderly and children who were mentally and physically handicapped.

He also went to college and got his master's in business in Las Vegas over the last three years and worked as a chef at an assisted living facility.

"He wanted to operate or be an administrator in an assisted living facility or nursing home," Debra Brown said in explaining his reason for getting his master's. "He was committed to helping those most vulnerable."

Brown got more gigs in Vegas doing what he loved most, playing Cher or some other singing diva at various nightclubs, gigs that were mostly fund-raisers for different charities, his mom said.

One of his highlights was singing at a club with the Weather Girls, who recorded "It's Raining Men" in 1982. Another was his close relationship with comedian Louie Anderson (they talked often, his mom said).

"He was living the dream," his mom said, "But that doesn't stop the hurt."

Sadly, Brown, just 44, died Dec. 2 from injuries sustained in a horrific car accident in Las Vegas in July. His death came just 19 days after his father, Leonard C. Brown Sr., died of lung cancer in Rochester on Nov. 13.

Debra Brown said her son was in the hospital being treated for four blood clots when his dad passed but had been released soon after and they had arranged to have him return for a family reunion on Dec. 16. He had been given medication to dissolve a final clot, she said, but it proved fatal.

She said her daughter called with the news at 4:30 a.m. that day, adding his partner said he couldn't bring himself to call Debra Brown he was so distraught.

"Sometimes I wake up at night and think it's some stupid hoax someone's playing on me," Debra Brown said stifling tears. "I mean I knew my husband was really sick when he died, but I thought my son was getting better and was coming home on the 16^th. I hadn't seen him in seven years."

To make matters worse, her husband had little life insurance and her son had none, so she now finds herself financially strapped and grief-ridden as she begins a new year after losing her son and husband in the final two months of last year.

If anyone would like to help the family, a Go Fund Me page has been set up to have with the many bills and expenses incurred by the losses of her husband and son.

To donate click HERE.