SR1013LRB097 23490 MST 72435 r

1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are deeply
3saddened to learn of the death of Richard Henry "Dick" Burwash
4of Savoy, who passed away on November 10, 2012; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash was born in Savoy on March 26,
61918, to Arthur E. and Mabel Burwash (Womacks); he married
7Catherine Watson on January 12, 1944; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash grew up in Monticello until his
9family relocated to Long Beach, California; his family returned
10to Champaign County in 1927; he graduated from Champaign High
11School in 1935, and he attended the University of Illinois,
12where he joined the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity and was a
13member of ROTC; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash served his country in the U.S.
15Army during World War II; he completed boot camp on the eve of
16the attack on Pearl Harbor; he served at Chanute Air Force Base
17in Rantoul, at a base near Savannah, Georgia, and then was
18transferred to the 439th Troop Carrier Group, where he
19relocated to England to assist with the Normandy invasion on
20D-Day; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Following the war, Richard Burwash operated the

 

 

SR1013- 2 -LRB097 23490 MST 72435 r

1family farm; he was active in the Champaign County Farm Bureau
2and served on its legislative committee in the early 1970's;
3the News-Gazette selected him as Farm Leader of the year; he
4served on the Carle Foundation Board of Trustees from 1967 to
51972 and was president of the board from 1970-71; he sat on the
6board of directors of the Champaign National Bank (now Busey
7Bank) and served as the board's chairman in the 1980's; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash was a 57-year member of the Rotary
9Club of Champaign and for 56 of those years grew sweet corn for
10the annual corn roast; he was a 32-degree Mason, a member of
11the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks Lodge in Savoy, and
12a lifetime member of American Legion Post 1492 in Savoy; he was
13a lifelong member of the Savoy United Methodist Church; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash was preceded in death by his wife,
15Catherine; his parents, Arthur E. and Mabel Burwash; his
16stepmother, Florence Burwash (Evans); his daughter, Barbara
17Anne; and his stepbrothers, George Evans and Edward Evans; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Richard Burwash is survived by his daughters,
19Laurin Elizabeth Vinson and Carol J. Burwash; his grandsons,
20Andrew L. (Paula) Vinson and Thaddeus Nathan Vinson; his
21stepsister, Phyllis Moore (Evans); and many beloved cousins,
22nieces, and nephews; therefore, be it
 

 

 

SR1013- 3 -LRB097 23490 MST 72435 r

1    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL
2ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
3Richard Burwash, and we extend our sincere condolences to his
4family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
5further
 
6    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
7presented to the family of Richard Burwash as an expression of
8our deepest sympathy.