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When Garrison Brown debuted a bold new look during Janelle Brown’s touching family gathering

Garrison Brown tragically died by suicide in March at the age of 25

Janelle Brown gave ‘Sister Wives’ fans an intimate glimpse into her Thanksgiving celebration in 2023, one that also happened to be a surprising transformation for her late son, Garrison. In the old post, Janelle shared some sweet Instagram moments from the festive day that she hosted for her "Flagstaff tribe," including her daughter Savannah, Garrison, and even some of her son Gabe's roommates. But the dramatic new look of a completely shaved head really came as a surprise for fans. “Thanksgiving dinner for my Flagstaff tribe with the bonus of Gabe’s roommates. Before you ask – yes, that is Robert on the left. He shaved his head a week or so ago, and it’s growing back,” she wrote. The change was so drastic that even longtime followers noted how “unrecognizable” he looked compared to his previous public appearances.

Janelle made her Thanksgiving full of surprising looks yet also full of joy in creating meaningful moments with her family. In her post, she opened up on how hosting this gathering actually felt grounding and comforting amid all the struggles that are going on in the family. “It was incredibly grounding today to cook for the group. I watched the Macy’s  Parade, cooked, baked, and just hung out today. Everyone has left now, and Savannah and I are relaxing. It was a great day,” she told The SUN. The Thanksgiving celebration stood out as a rare moment of peace for the Brown family, whose relationships have been heavily strained, particularly between Kody Brown and his sons, Garrison and Gabe.

During the pandemic, tensions flared, with the late Garrison openly criticizing his father. “Since I last talked to Dad, I bought a house, I’ve gotten into school and I got the car that I wanted – that he told me I should never get,” Garrison previously shared on ‘Sister Wives’ before his tragic passing away. Kody too, admitted the estrangement between him and the others but added that his efforts to patch things up were being opposed. “I’ve reached out to Garrison and Gabriel. I reached out to them just before Christmas and I reached out to them after. No, they’re blocking me. They’re not interested in talking to me,” Kody said on the show.

Despite his contentious relationship with his late son Garrison, Kody revealed a deep regret of not spending as much time as he could with him before the young man tragically took his own life in March. In a conversation with ‘People’, Kody spoke candidly about heartbreak and regret over moments that he wished he had cherished. “The only regret is just, taking advantage of the time,” he told. “I want to go out to dinner again. I want to sit down. I want to have a beer. I want [Garrison] to try and make me laugh because he was that way. The only regret is just, gosh, I would just do that more often.”

Garrison Brown passed away by suicide on March 5, 2024, after he was found deceased by his younger brother Gabriel inside his Arizona home. According to Janelle, there were no overt warning signs leading up to his death, and she described him as a funny, upbeat young man who was excited about his career and life. He had recently adopted another cat and often called his family, making his death even more shocking. Janelle has said she believes substance abuse may have contributed to Garrison’s mental health issues, but has made it clear that he did have resources, support, and love from the family.

“We just had no idea that he was in that place,” Janelle told PEOPLE after his shocking death. “But he didn’t ever express any kind of extreme sad feelings.” She admitted he was fighting demons inside him that he was unable to overcome, but nobody in the family expected he’d take his own life. “We actually were having conversations. He had all the resources that he could have needed. This was just such a shock. We just never expected this.”