Cynthia Marie (Cindy) Brown

Cynthia Marie (Cindy) Brown passed away in the early morning hours of 11 August 2026 at the Bayou Maison Home in Simmesport after a lengthy illness.

Cindy came into our lives carrying gifts of love that were warm, true, and unwavering. She was born on May 20, 1948 in New Roads, Louisiana - possessing an infectious joy and exuberant personality that brightened every life she touched.

Family was the great constant of Cindy's life. An only child, she cherished her cousins and thought of them as siblings (and their children as nieces and nephews.) She delighted in family gatherings, and nurtured relationships with unwavering devotion. Cindy had a gift for conversation and connection, maintaining lifelong friendships that enriched her life and the lives of those fortunate enough to know her. Her enduring lifelong friendship with Gail Major was especially important to her.

Cindy was a graduate of Catholic High School of Pointe Coupee and received her B.A. and M.Ed. +30 from Southeastern Louisiana University. She was employed by the Jefferson Parish Public School System for 33 years where she served as a teacher, Assistant Principal and as Principal for 21 of those years. She also served in the St. Tammany Public School System for as a Mental Health Provider.

Cindy was twice selected as Elementary Principal of the year. She served on the board of the Louisiana Association of School Executives and was a member of the Louisiana Principal's Association, The Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development. She also served as secretary and President of The Jefferson Association of Public School Administrators.

After retirement, Cindy became an advocate for abused children. She volunteered at the New Orleans Children's Advocacy Center. She trained adults to recognize, respond and prevent child sexual abuse as a facilitator with Darkness to Light, Stewards of Children. Additionally, Cindy was a certified forensic interviewer of abused children. She served on the Board of Directors of the Children's Advocacy of St. Tammany & Washington Parishes and was on the board of Raintree Services for Children.

To family and friends, Cindy was a living repository of the exuberance and spirit of mid-1960s New Roads. She delighted in sharing stories of her youth, recounting afternoons spent cruising the False River drag and gathering at long-gone landmarks such as Trop’s, Casa Loma, Triple Arch, Bueche's, and The Lighthouse. All these memories came alive through her storytelling, often accompanied by the soundtrack of Elvis Presley, Motown, and Louisiana rock & roll.

A loyal Saints fan, Cindy followed her beloved team through decades of hope and heartbreak. The Saints' Super Bowl victory in 2010 remained a source of pride and joy, not only for the championship itself but for what it represented to New Orleans, the resilient city she loved so well.

She is survived by three foster children, Chad, Brittany and Terry Dial and two half-sisters, Joan Michelle Brown and Lt. Col. Meredith Ellen Brown, USMC (ret) and her husband Daniel Duggan, one nephew, Marshall Joseph Brown Duggan as well as the cousins, whom she loved and thought of as brothers and sisters: Charles B. Smith, J. Dodd Smith, Crosby Smith, Guy Smith, Winnifred Smith Whitner, Patrice Smith, Kim Crosby Duffy, Dana Crosby Guercio. She was preceded in death by her parents, Marie Crosby Brown and J. Marshall Brown; grandparents, Winnie Bouanchaud and Raymond H. Crosby and Clyde Marshall and Carrie T. Brown and close cousins Olivier Smith, Mary Elizabeth “Teedie” Smith and Paul Raymond Smith. She was the great granddaughter of long time Pointe Coupee Sheriff Lamartine Bouanchaud.

It was her wish that her death not be mourned, but her life celebrated. Children were her passion, and she asked that donations be made to the New Orleans Children's Hospital, St. Jude's Children's Hospital or the Children's Advocacy Center of St. Tammany & Washington parishes.

A private memorial is planned for a future date.