Julie Deborah Brown Founded a Non-profit Organization to Help Impoverished Babies

Julie Deborah Brown was Ken Burns' second wife, who has been running the organization she founded since 1998. Beyond her philanthropic activities, she is a proud mom to two girls.

Ken Burns, known as a director and producer of "Brooklyn Bridge," "The Civil War," "Jazz," and "Baseball," among other productions, was a happily married man to Julie Deborah Brown for many years.

While Burns is successful in the entertainment industry, having founded Florentine Films, Brown is also a star in her own right as a philanthropist.

Julie Deborah Brown Was Ken Burns' Wife of 20 Years

Brown officially became Ken Burns' wife in October 2003. They tied the knot at their Walpole, New Hemisphere, home, with Justice Dayton Duncan as the officiant. She was 37 then, while he was 50.

Brown and Burns enjoyed their married life in private. Sadly, in a 2017 interview, he revealed that they had already separated, noting that his relationship with their kids became better after the split.

Burns previously married Amy Stechler, a documentarian who died in 2022. The duo shared two daughters, Sarah and Lilly Burns. Both joined the entertainment industry.

Julie Deborah Brown Is a Mother of Two

Soon after their marriage, Brown welcomed two daughters, Olivia and Willa Burns. The two girls share a close bond with their father, with whom they spend time at his lake house. At times, while riding on a boat with his daughters, Burns jokes about the breaks not working to scare Olivia.

While her ex-husband found success in show business, Brown, a University of Michigan and New York University graduate, founded and built up Room to Grow.

Besides being playful, Brown's daughters are also intellectual. At age six, one of them learned how to recite a list of US presidents. Olivia even boasted about meeting former President Barack Obama a couple of times because of his father's connection to him.

In 2014, Brown and her partner attended an informal dinner at the White House. "We had drinks out on the porch, and we went out to the garden that Michelle was growing," he shared. "Then we came in and ate."

During the event, Olivia's father captured Obama, saying he missed Olivia and wished she joined them for the evening. The video is a memorable moment Olivia always remembers.

Julie Deborah Brown Is the Founder and Board President of Room to Grow

While her ex-husband found success in show business, Brown, a University of Michigan and New York University graduate, founded and built up Room to Grow.

The non-profit organization was founded in 1998 and stands strong to this day. Room to Grow provides "support to families raising babies born into low-income circumstances." Their website reads:

"We provide parents and caregivers with essential baby and toddler items, strategies and support to promote their children's development, and connections to community resources [...]."

Brown and Burns attended several Room to Grow events together, including the foundation's 2014 Gala and 2016 Spring Benefit. In 2017, Brown brought her daughter, Olivia, to the Room to Grow Spring Benefit in New York.