Dr. Susan Padama Brown

Susan Padama Brown was a special gift to all with whom she interacted, and she lived her life with great purpose and passion. Born December 5, 1958 to the late Florencio and Purita Padama in Cotabato City, Philippines, Susan was the eldest of three siblings. Susan attended Notre Dame of Cotabato Girls Department in Cotabato City during her first 3 years of high school. Due to hostilities in the Cotabato City region, she graduated from Immaculate Conception College High School in Davao City, Philippines in 1975. Inspired by her father – a rural Physician covering regions of Mindanao, Susan’s ambition was to become a doctor. This, together with her general love for people and specific concern for the health and welfare of her community drove her to the medical field. She earned her Bachelor of Science Pre-Med Degree in 1979 from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines and secured her Doctor of Medicine in 1983 from General Emilio Aguinaldo College of Medicine (now known as De La Salle University College of Medicine in Cavite, Philippines). Susan then turned her focus to providing emergency medical services for acute illness and injuries for all age groups serving both as an Emergency Physician and private practitioner in Cotabato City, Philippines. Susan also served as a Resident Physician at the Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center and Quezon City General Hospital both in Manila, Philippines during 1985-1987. Susan met Keith Brown in 1985 when they connected at the home of one of the Philippines’ premier artists - Pacita Abad - in Manila, Philippines. Two years later, they married on July 25, 1987, in Manila, and moved to the United States in 1988. Committed to continuing her medical pursuits in the U.S., she completed one year of an Internal Medicine residency at the Presbyterian Medical Center of Philadelphia in 1995. Susan decided to change her specialty and move to Oklahoma City, where she completed a 3-year residency in Family Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in 1998. During this residency under the University’s 2-month long Special Projects Program, she joined her husband (then USAID Director) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and provided medical services at the famous Black Lion Hospital and supported the work of world renown Dr. Catherine Hamlin dedicated to the treatment and prevention of obstetric fistulas at the Hamlin Hospital/Foundation. After successfully completing this residency, Susan started her practice as an Ambulatory Care Department physician at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Oklahoma City during 1998-1999. She then joined her husband in Fairfax, Virginia and began her distinguished 20-year career as a Family Medicine and Advanced Urgent Care Physician for the Kaiser Permanente Mid-Atlantic Group, retiring in 2020. Susan was licensed to practice medicine in Oklahoma, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Professional Society Memberships included the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Medical Association, Virginia Academy of Family Physicians, Association of Philippine Physicians in America, and the Philippine Medical Association of Metro Washington. Susan and Keith enjoyed 35 wonderful years of matrimony. Susan brought sunshine and joy to any and every room she entered. She always welcomed you with a smile and warm hospitality as you entered her home. Susan loved spending time with her extensive extended family and many friends both in the U.S. and the Philippines. She also took great pleasure in gardening. She was a great dancer and was a quick study of forms of popular dance. Susan loved to cook, enjoyed good food and was great at menu experimentation. But most of all, she loved traveling the world with her husband as they traveled extensively throughout East Asia, Australia, Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa. Susan passed on June 3, 2022. She is survived by her beloved husband, and life partner, Keith, brother Benjamin Padama, Sister-in-law Helen, two nieces Maya and Christina Padama, two nephews Miguel Padama and Ceejay Cahayag, and many loving cousins, friends, and colleagues. The Family will receive friends on Thursday, 5-8 p.m. June 16 for the Viewing at the National Funeral Home, 7482 Lee Highway, Falls Church, VA 22042. The Funeral Mass will be held 11:00 a.m. Friday, June 17 at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church, 3700 Old Lee Hwy, Fairfax, VA 22030. Interment will follow at National Memorial Park, 7482 Lee Hwy, Falls Church, VA 22042. Arrangements are by the National Funeral Home.