By Analiz G. Schremmer

AUSTIN—Dr. Lillian Brown can’t sing with her voice, so she does it with her piano.

Brown, 89, said that when she moved to Buckner Villas in Austin, she had nowhere to place her piano, so she donated it in memory of her father, Rev. E. E. Wheeless, who had served as pastor at Hyde Park Baptist Church in Austin.



“You see, when you give something away, it’s a way of keeping it,” Brown said. “Also, Jesus is important to me and that’s what I get out of this exchange.”

Whenever she likes, she walks over to the dining area where she practices her music in a place where everyone can enjoy it.

Brown plays the piano beautifully, and since her voice was reduced to a whisper with the removal of a vocal cord, she tells the words before playing her tunes. She sings hymns about the greatness of God, and some of them she’s written herself.

[caption id="attachment_1875" align="alignright" width="200" caption="Dr. Brown has played hymns on the piano since she was 16 years old."][/caption]

Brown said that what she does is unto God and she shared a few things that God has taught her since she came to Buckner Villas.

“I’m learning that you can keep things by giving them away. I am learning that you can be pleasing to Jesus by caring for others, by understanding other’s problems…. I am also learning that sometimes you have to admit that you have things that you still need to learn.”

Buckner Villas is one of seven Buckner retirement communities. Learn more about Buckner Retirement Services, Inc. at www.bucknerretirement.org.