Anderson, the pastor, said Christopher was part of his church's youth ministry and served as a junior usher for the past several years. "He was a real nice guy, kind of soft-spoken. He was athletic."
He described Christopher as "a typical kid. He didn't always do things right, like a normal teenager, but he wasn't one to be in trouble with the law."
Albert Howard, a physical education teacher at Randallstown High who taught Brown this school year, said he was shocked when he heard the news of the teen's death.
Teachers see "some kids living on the edge, taking chances," and kids at the school have died in years past after being shot or getting into trouble, Howard said.
But Brown wasn't the type of kid who "shook the dice" by living a dangerous life, Howard said.
"He was a fun-loving kid, nothing malicious about the kid, very respectful."
He said Brown was a promising athlete who, at about 5 feet 10 inches and 175 pounds, "definitely figured in the plans for the future of the Randallstown football program."
Howard had invited Brown to the Coppin State football camp this weekend to keep him involved and thinking about the game through his injury.
Ray Wright, one of the high school's football coaches, said Brown had a "promising future" and was voted one of the junior varsity football team's "Unsung Heroes" this season because he played so many positions.
The school's varsity football coach, William Crawford, said he planned to use Brown as the team's starting center and long snapper.
Crawford said many players on the school's junior varsity football team had taken the news hard. Some didn't show up to a seven-on-seven interschool football tournament at Franklin High School on Thursday night, while others seemed distracted on the field, he said.
"They took it really hard," Crawford said. "It's affecting them mentally."
After the altercation described by police, a neighbor called 911 about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, and said a police officer was calling for help on her front lawn in the 4000 block of Starbrook Road.
Neighbors along Starbrook Road said they were alarmed Wednesday night by a number of police cars blocking the street and a helicopter hovering overhead.
"The whole block was filled up," said Charles Preston, who lives across from where Brown was found in front of a small ranch-style home.
Jerry Stamper, 58, who was gone overnight, said he began receiving texts from neighbors saying a teen had died on the street.
He returned Thursday morning to find TV trucks rolling down his street, he said, a scene he described as "the most traffic we've seen."
After the altercation, Christopher Brown was taken to Northwest Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Chris Brown said Thursday afternoon that she had not been allowed to see her son's body, and that police identified him independently, simply notifying her he was dead.
"I'm just not sure if I will ever get the answers," she said.
