Jean H. Burns
Private services
KERRVILLE - Jean H. Burns, 80, passed away Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, at Peterson Regional Medical Center in Kerrville.
She was born Feb. 14, 1931, in Joplin, Mo., to Curtis and Iris Roberts Harker. Her childhood was spent in Joplin, Webb City and Kansas City, Mo. After graduation from Kansas City's Northeast High School in 1948, she attended Central Missouri State College in Warrensburg.
Jean married William F. Bill Burns Jr. in 1958 in Dallas. His career with U.S. Customs took them to Houston for nine years and Laredo for 19. They retired to Kerrville in 1988.
In Dallas she and Bill were charter members of the Dallas Association for Childbirth Education, in Houston she was a Brownie Scout leader and helped organize the Pasadena Writers Club, and in Laredo she was on the board of the Tuesday Music and Literature Club and helped establish a chapter of Texas Press Women, an affiliate of the National Federation of Press Women. She served on the TPW state board throughout her membership of more than 20 years.
As a journalist she was a reporter on The Belleville (Kan.) Telescope and The Kansas City Star, publicity director of the Dallas County Community Chest, public information officer of Laredo's United Independent School District and a communications specialist at Laredo Junior College. As a freelance writer, Jean's full-length articles appeared in The Reader's Digest and the regional pages of Modern Maturity, as well as a short story in Young Miss.
As a volunteer she was a board member and publicity chairwoman of the Laredo Civic Music Association, Laredo Philharmonic and Kerrville Habitat for Humanity. Jean served on the official boards of First Christian Church of Kerrville, where she worked with its diabetes support group, and Laredo, where she was the first woman elected board chairman. Beginning in 1993 she was an active member of Kerrville's First Presbyterian Church and held offices in Presbyterian Women.
Jean is survived by her cherished husband of 53 years, William F. Burns Jr.; three beloved daughters, Kathryn Anne Burns of Austin, Carrie Jean Burns of Lakeway and Christy Lee Burns of Richmond, Va.; sister-in-law, Doris Harker of Independence, Mo.; and brother-in-law, Robert J. O'Brien of Enid, Okla.; and nephews and nieces.
She was pre-deceased by her sister, Mary Corley; brother, Curtis Harker; and sister-in-law, Kay O'Brien.
She will be cremated and a private celebration of her life will be held by the family at a later date.
Memorial gifts may be made to Christian Assistance Ministry, P.O. Box 291352, Kerrville, TX 78029-1352.
