Melissa C. Brown, 75, of Holland, Michigan, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Thursday, March 26, 2026, after a long battle with dementia. Her peaceful passing stood in fitting contrast to the bold, brilliant approach to all things in life. She was a powerful intellect, fierce mom, and highly accomplished professional and attorney.
Melissa was born July 10, 1950, in Sydney, Australia, to Douglas and Celia (O’Donnell) Brown, the youngest of two daughters. Douglas, a Staff Sergeant wounded in action during WWII while serving in the Army Air Corps, married Celia in Australia and they briefly made their home there. In the 1950s, the family returned to the United States aboard the Queen Mary and settled in Spring Lake.
Melissa showed tremendous academic and musical potential at an early age. She played French horn and was a gifted pianist, later becoming a member of the National Honor Society. She initially attended the University of Michigan and completed her undergraduate education at Grand Valley following the birth of her son Iain. She then began a distinguished career in communications, first with Herman Miller and later Steelcase, before going on to earn a master’s degree from Ohio University. Melissa moved to Grand Rapids in 1987, where she wrote award-winning speeches for numerous executives in the furniture and other industries.
Melissa met Dr. Edward Baum soon thereafter at Fountain Street Church. They married in August 1992. Their mutual connections to Grand Valley State University were powerful: Melissa’s mother had been an accountant with GVSU since its founding in 1962; Ed was a chemistry professor and led the Honors College; Iain graduated from GVSU in 1998. By the time of Ed’s retirement in 2017, someone in the family had been in the administration, faculty, or student body for 55 years.
At the age of 44, Melissa undertook her greatest academic and professional challenge, this time by enrolling in Notre Dame Law School. Her grit, determination and vision propelled her to the top of her class, earning honors in legal writing and distinguishing herself in an exceptional class that included a future Supreme Court Justice. She went on to professional acclaim at large firms in Chicago, returning to West Michigan in 2009. Along the way, she took the “hard” cases, represented indigent and unpopular clients who needed help the most, and nobly applied her legal acumen in service to others.
Beyond her professional life, Melissa pursued her lifelong passions for dogs, horses, music and the arts, found joy in the small kindnesses of home in West Michigan, and, most importantly, embraced her role as “Babo” to her beloved grandchildren.
The world may be a bit dimmer today than when Melissa illuminated it with her bright, brash intelligence and courage. But that peaceful passing is a temporary sunset in anticipation of the dawn that brings with it the dividend of all that her family, friends and colleagues learned from her as they put those things to work in their own lives.
Melissa is survived by her husband of 33 years, Dr. Edward Baum; her son, Colonel Iain Pedden (USMC) and his wife, Danielle; their children, Grace, Jack, and Josephine; and Ed’s daughters Laura and Jeanne.
Visitation will be held from 1:00 to 2:45 p.m., followed by a memorial service at 3:00 p.m., on Thursday, April 2, 2026, at Langeland-Sterenberg Funeral Home, 315 E. 16th Street, Holland, Michigan. Interment will take place at Pilgrim Home Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the Equest Center in Rockford or the ASPCA.
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