Memorial Service for Tom Brown Jr.Please read in its entirety as important information is listed below
Dearest Tracker Family,
It feels like it was just a few days ago and somehow simultaneously many years ago, that Tom Brown Jr. made his transition to the non-physical. Grief warps time like that, and we miss his larger-than-life presence so keenly. We all process this change in our own ways and at our own speed. His passing comes at a time that pushes us to miss him all the more deeply; a time when the challenges we face, collectively and individually, are neither small nor few.
We looked to Tom for so much more than primitive skills. He was a leader, mentor and visionary. He was our connection to magic and mystery. As such, he left tracks on all of our hearts that will never fade.
Tom began the first chapter of his first book, The Tracker, with the following:
“The mystery leaves itself like a trail of breadcrumbs, and by the time your mind has eaten its way to the maker of the tracks, the mystery is inside you, part of you forever. The tracks of every mystery you have ever swallowed move inside your own tracks, shading them slightly or skewing them with nuances that show how much more you have become than what you were.”
We have all become so much more thanks to Tom. May we all take some measure of comfort in that.
It is at this time that we would like to invite the Tracker family to gather in Tom’s honor. On May 30th - June 1st, 2025, we will light a fire for Tom. It will be a time to come together, to grieve and remember, to be together in community.
We will open the Joseph Citta Boy Scout Camp for as many people as possible to join us in-person for the fire. We ask for your patience and understanding as these spots will be limited to due to the capacity of the place itself and the ability of the staff to support such a crowd. Please understand that these spaces will fill painfully fast and accept our apology in advance, for not having the capacity for more. We will also be offering different options to accommodate all. They will be listed as different tiers for those who need special accommodations and for those who may only be able to attend for the ceremony alone. They will be listed with links below with all of the necessary information.
We will also broadcast this gathering to include as many more in attendance from afar as possible.
You will all find the links below to register online. Please be mindful when registering. If attending in person the Memorial will be listed on the website as Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3, under Scheduled courses. If registering to attend the live online version, that will be located on the website under online courses. This will help us to know who will be attending in person and which accommodations you prefer. We thank you for your help in this matter.
The timing for this fire falls midway between the Full Flower Moon of May and the Full Strawberry Moon of June. It feels not surprisingly in keeping with Tom’s legacy of no coincidences, that we should gather in the space between flowers beginning to bloom and the ripening of fruit. We set the intent, that this will be the gift of this gathering; that it will be so much more than a releasing of grief.
As you move through the coming days, remember it is no mistake that the chickadee sits at the center of the school logo, the shield of the school. Of chickadees, Tom wrote:
“Of all the birds, Stalking Wolf respected the chickadee the most, even more than the hawk or the owl. Every animal had some characteristic to admire and emulate, and Stalking Wolf often used them as examples of what our own skills should be like. We learned to be patient observers like the owl. We learned cleverness from the crow, and courage from the jay, who will attack an owl ten times its size to drive it off its territory. But above all of them ranked the chickadee because of its indomitable spirit.”
May the spirit of the chickadee be with you all. We wish you peace, love and comfort in these times. May you draw together sweetly with the ones you love over the coming holidays. We, as the extended Tracker family, may be scattered far and wide, and longing to see each other more often, but we are together always through Tom’s legacy and the teachings. They move in all of our tracks.
In good medicine,
Celeste, River, and the Staff at Tracker
