Milan Whitesel Brickhouse, fondly known as “Brick,” of Washington, passed away at 93 on March 12, 2019.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Milan Gates Brickhouse and Nanny Berry Brickhouse Harris; his loving grandparents, Henry and Betty Williams Berry; his wife of 62 years, Emily Bateman Brickhouse; second wife, Alma Jewell; and siblings, Elva Harris Johnston, Shrigley W. Harris, Oral D. Harris and Daryl B. Harris.

Brick is survived by his sister Marlaine Tyree ,of Ernul; daughter Deanne Brickhouse Beckwith and her husband, Colonel Charles E. Beckwith Jr., U.S. Army (Ret.), of Pawley’s Island, South Carolina; and by his son, Milan Eugene “Gene” Brickhouse and his wife, Holly Presser Brickhouse, of Bloomington, Illinois. His four grandchildren are Charles E. “Ched” Beckwith III, and Emily Becher, Gina Mandros and Michael J. Brickhouse, residents of Illinois. He has four great-grandchildren, who he enthralled with stories of life in the fields and on the roads and rivers of eastern North Carolina; Michael and Sophia Becher, and Jacob and Dagny Mandros.

A U.S. Marine with the 3rd Marine Division from 1944 to 1945, he was wounded on Iwo Jima and awarded the Purple Heart. At the end of the war, he faced brutally frigid and austere conditions serving as a military police officer in occupied northern China. He was a long-time member and supporter of the Disabled American Veterans and the Civitan Club, where he was President of the Greenville chapter.

Brick was a member of Washington’s First Christian Church, where he taught adult Sunday school for over 30 years and served multiple terms as an Elder. He developed and managed the organization, course structure and operations for the first Pitt Technical College, now called Pitt Community College, which was a model for community colleges across the country. He later owned and operated Brickhouse Equipment Sales.

Visitation will be held at Paul Funeral Home from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 15, 2019. A funeral service will be held at the First Christian Church, 307 E. Third St., Washington, at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 16.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that tribute gifts be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation at www.parkinson.org.

Condolences may be addressed to the family by visiting www.paulfuneralhome.com.

Paul Funeral Home & Crematory of Washington is honored to serve the Brickhouse family.