Valerie Lorenz, age 81, passed away peacefully on April 4,
2024 at her home in Winchester with her husband, Philip
Lorenz III, son William (Billy) Brain and his partner,
Dianne Robinson by her side.
She was born on March 21, 1943, in Medicine Hat,
Alberta, Canada. As a young child, she was raised in
England with her parents, Leonard Willcock and Luella
Rose Swartz Willcock. Her birth name was Luella Rose
Valerie Willcock.
Valerie and her husband, Robert William Brain who
immigrated to America, got married in Georgia in 1964.
They had moved to Estill Springs, Tennessee in Franklin
County and went to Chattanooga in 1975, where she got
her naturalization certification as a U.S. citizen.
Around 1980, Valerie met Marcie Stovall, who was
teaching exercise lessons to women for the National
Fitness Center, a franchise at a location where they lived.
Valerie was teaching aerobics and wanted Marcie to join
her with those classes, which included children of
different ages and women.
Valerie had taken a range of classes on physiology,
anatomy and exercise before teaching aerobics and later
gymnastics. She also gave swimming lessons to residents
of Franklin and other counties close by.
Her goal was to improve the physical health for people of
all ages. Her goal was to help the community, not just
with their physical health, but also to have positive social
connections.
Valerie was preceded in death by her first husband, who
was a nurseryman with his 6.5 Asia Nursery in
Winchester, brother Glen Willcock, her mother Luella
North, stepfather, Bill Trotter, stepfather Jack North and
grandson Lachlan Morgan Brain.
She is survived by her siblings Cheryl Hunter, Maxine
Sanderson, and Dayle Pringle, brother Russell Willcock,
sons Robert Glen Brain, William Russell Brain, and John
Brain, grandsons Bobby Dale Brain, Liam Brain, Ella and
Ian Brain.
Valerie was a member of a women’s financial investment
group called Claire, which was managed by Anne Lorenz.
Anne was Philip Lorenz’s stepmother. The day the group
was meeting at Anne and Professor Jack Lorenz’s home
and property called Onteora, was when Philip had retired
after 20 years serving in the Navy in 2001. That is how
Philip and Valerie met.
They got married in 2004 at Onteora, a 40-acre tract of
land with two lakes and a beautiful bluff view of
Sherwood Cove.
Valerie’s kindness, intelligence, beauty, sense of humor
and physically and mentally active, healthy lifestyle
united them for 19 years, when her life was cut short by
cancer.
Philip knew early on that Valerie would love to dance and
they had their first dance lesson from a Scottish couple,
James and Mary Hannaway who had immigrated to the
U.S. in 1971.
Dancing then became Valerie’s passion and she rapidly
transitioned from a student to an excellent dance
instructor of ballroom dancing to Latin dances in
Sewanee, Winchester, Tullahoma, Cowan and beyond.
Philip worked for the public affairs contractor as a staff
writer and photographer at Arnold Air Force Base, which
operates more than 68 aerodynamic and propulsion wind
tunnels, rocket and turbine engine test cells, arc heaters
and more with tenants in eight states.
The base also offered free dance lessons for most of the
11 years he worked there, which provided a place for
both to hone their skills. Eventually, Valerie taught group
dance lessons at the base and one of her first students
was the base commander.
Valerie and Philip also took dance lessons at Dance
Murfreesboro for several years and attended Dance
Camp in Mississippi. They also took dance cruises to
places like Belize and Honduras.
Eventually, Valerie started shifting her focus on art, water
color painting specifically, joining the Cowan Art Depot.
Valerie’s funeral will take place at the Watson
Funeral Home & Memorial Park at 405 Sharp Springs Rd
Winchester, Saturday, April 13 with visitation from 11 am – 3 pm with
Service following at 3 pm. Watson Funeral Home & Memorial Park
405 Sharp Springs Road, Winchester, TN 37398, (931)967-2345
