The Bell Tower of Fame Award recognizes someone who has lived in Greene County sometime in their life and whose professional or personal accomplishments have brought international, national or statewide recognition for which Greene County is proud.
When anyone in local, state or leadership positions of the Patriotic Order of Does is asked to name a person who has had the most effect over the past 50+ years, it is Ellie J. Brown’s name that comes to the top. She rose through the national leadership ranks, becoming the president in 1995 and masterminding the Does 75th Diamond Jubilee year’s celebration. She led 144 local Does organizations and membership as high as 23,000.
She traveled 35 weeks of that year to 23 states, encouraging Elks, Does and the public to use their innovation and caring and creative ability to better their communities and local organizations. During her presidency, the national and local Does organizations contributed almost $550,000 in cash to local, state and national charities.
Now, Brown has continued to reach new heights of responsibilities that affect the Does membership across the nation. She was responsible for leading the $1 million project to build a national headquarters and heritage center for the Does in Omaha, NE. Funded entirely by donations from Does members, the facility opened with a dedication in 2011. The facility also houses a gallery museum which displays Does artifacts and memorabilia from as early as 1921. Brown is chair of the Heritage Center.
She has been a national trustee and is now one of 30 lifetime directors on the Executive Council. She serves as the Does national chief financial officer, tax advisor and in 2002 was elected chair of the national convention committee, a position she still holds today. She travels throughout the United States to determine national convention sites, negotiating and finalizing contracts and managing the events. She is also a member of the national scholarship selection committee that awards recipients with up to $10,000 to $20,000 over the period of their degrees.
In Jefferson, she has led the local Does organization and continues to serve on a number of committees to raise funds for a variety of local Does charitable projects.
Brown is a 1961 graduate of Jefferson (Iowa)High School and served clients as a tax advisor in the office of William C. Ostlund in Jefferson. She was awarded the Internal Revenue Service’s Enrolled Agent Status in 2012 and retired as a tax advisor and representative for individuals, corporations, estates and trusts in 2025 from the firm of Finneseth, Dalen & Powell PLC in Jefferson.
A community supporter herself, Brown helped start PAWS, an animal shelter, and serves on the board of Why Not Us, an investment group that has a mission to revitalize the historic Jefferson downtown district.
She is married to Steve Brown, now a retired funeral home director. Her daughter and family also reside in Jefferson. Brown will receive the award at opening ceremonies of the 2026 Bell Tower Festival Friday, June 12, at 6:30 pm on the Bell Tower Plaza in downtown Jefferson. A public reception for her will be held in the Greene County courthouse rotunda immediately following opening ceremonies until 8 pm.
