Steve Brown Honored with One World Surgery’s 2025 Spirit of Service Award

Steve Brown, principal – Forte Real Estate Partners, was honored at One World Surgery’s (OWS) Minnesota Gala presented by Summit Orthopedics on November 1 for his commitment to healthcare and supporting OWS’ mission to provide life-changing surgical and primary care to patients in Honduras and the Dominican Republic. The organization was founded by Summit’s own, Dr. Peter Daly and his wife, LuLu, in 2004. Summit Orthopedics CEO Adam Berry presented the organization’s Spirit of Service Award to Brown after their most recent brigade to Honduras this summer.

At the Summit Orthopedics brigade to Honduras in August, Brown, who has been a supporter of One World Surgery since 2018, participated as a volunteer along with surgeons from Summit Orthopedics, college and high school volunteers, and other surgical specialists from around the country.

Berry explained that at the end of the brigade, he asked the volunteers: “When all is said and done, was more said or was more done?”

This question, he explained, reflects the very essence of the Spirit of Service Award—recognizing individuals who elevate service beyond words, and instead lead through action.

“This year’s recipient has certainly done more through action than he has said in words, time and time again,” Berry noted as he began describing his colleague and friend he has known for many years. The story he shared painted a portrait not just of what Brown contributes to One World Surgery, but who he is at his core.

To truly understand Steve’s character, Berry explained, one must know the foundation upon which his values were built. Brown’s father, a founding, respected physician with Minnesota Oncology, left a lasting imprint on him. Though Brown did not enter the medical field himself, he has spent his career uplifting and supporting healthcare professionals—by helping advance their patient care and expanding access to healing through real estate.

Berry recalled a defining moment that revealed just how deeply Steve’s commitment is tied to his father’s legacy. While assisting Dr. Kris Breien in Operating Room #2, Brown held the patient’s leg during the surgery, he paused, looked up, and said quietly:

“If only my dad could see me now. I think he would be proud.”

It was a moment that captured both Brown’s humility and the personal meaning behind his service.

Steve was recognized as a leader who embodies the values of Summit Orthopedics and One World Surgery: commitment, compassion, and a relentless focus on doing what needs to be done.

“Steve has not only made his father proud,” Berry said, “but he has made all of us proud, through his contributions, his dedication, and his ability to turn words into action.”

On behalf of Summit Orthopedics and One World Surgery, the organization extended its gratitude and admiration for Brown’s dedication to service—service that has strengthened teams, changed lives, and honored a family legacy of care.

Congratulations to Steve Brown, recipient of One World Surgery’s 2025 Spirit of Service Award.