Jerry Mark Burns' Obituary
Jerry Mark Burns, devoted husband, beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great grandfather and trusted friend went home into the glorious presence of his Lord and Savior on October 12, 2022.
Jerry was born on September 11, 1938, in Dallas, Texas, and was preceded in death by his parents, Mark Thomas and Irene Cain Burns, sisters Juanita Burns Cheatham and Marjorie Burns McNatt.
Jerry graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School and attended Baylor University. He married Shirley Sandkuhl, his high-school sweetheart, on September 17, 1957. They resided in Waco, Texas, while he served in the U.S. Air Force for four years, later moving to Dallas, Texas, where they raised their family, with a short two-year stint in Atlantic City, New Jersey. In later years, he and Shirley moved to Fairfax, Virginia and Tapei, Taiwan, before returning to the Dallas area in the early aughts.
He had a long career in aviation, from air traffic control to senior management. After serving 30 years in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), he went onto various corporations, including IBM and Lockheed Martin. His most prominent achievement was writing the original program for the United States air traffic control. Which led to the chief consultant for the development of programming for the Chinese Aviation Administration (CAA) air traffic control, in Tapei, Taiwan, where he and Shirley resided for over 10 years. When they returned to the states he formed his own consulting company, JBACKS, whose namesake is derived from the first name initials of his immediate family (J-Jerry, B-Benjamin, A-Andrew, C-Christopher,
K-Katherine and S-Shirley). Jerry had a very strong work ethic, proven by his career over the last several years up to his last days, working as a Systems Analyst Engineer and consultant for Guice Associates Inc.
Jerry’s life was centered around his family and friends, his church and business endeavors. He was highly respected, admired and loved by everyone he touched. He leaves a legacy with a noble pattern for his family, friends and associates to follow.
He is survived by Shirley, his wife, best friend and loving companion for 65 years; his adored children, Ben Burns (Jeffie), Andrew Burns (Amy), Chris Burns and Katie Garrett (Eric); eleven grandchildren, Jeremy, Jennifer, Jackie, Tyler, Rachel, Carter, Brandi, Christopher, Mark, Michael, and Logan; fourteen great-grandchildren, Stormi, Avari, Preslei, Molli, Nathan, Benjamin, John Wesley, Crosby, Gehrig, Lake, Alexi, Riley Jo, William and Henry; and one great-great-grandchild, Cove; and many cousins and nephews.
Memorial contributions may be made to:
First Baptist Church of Dallas
1707 San Jacinto Street
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 969-0111 / www.firstdallas.org
Services for Mr. Jerry Burns will be held at 2p, Wednesday October 19, 2022, in the Memorial Chapel at Restland Funeral Home. A visitation will be held prior on Tuesday October ,18, 2022 from 6p-8p at Restland Funeral Home.
Funeral arrangements for Mr. Jerry Burns have been faithfully entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery, which is located at 13005 Greenville Ave., at the intersection of Restland Road, Dallas, Texas 75243, and can be reached at (972) 238-7111.
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