December 6, 1938 - March 11, 2022
Donald Edgar Burns, 83, was ushered to his heavenly home on March 11th, 2022, at Medical Center of the Rockies, surrounded by his family. Though he had fought courageously against progressive lung disease (IPF) since 2014, as well as other health issues, he still announced, the day before he passed, “I’m a satisfied man.”
Don was born, the elder of two sons, to Edgar and Elsie (Kerns) Burns in Wheatland, Wyoming, where he grew up with his younger brother Ronnie, the two sharing boyhood adventures, fishing, and hunting along the Laramie River. Don lived his life as the high-energy person he was. Becoming a union painter at 15 in his hometown, he left after graduation for a job painting on the Navajo Reservation in Gallup, NM. He later relocated to Farmington, NM, where he lived with the family of his close friend, Larry Garcia. So dear and lasting were his memories of that time, Don always referred to Larry, his parents and sisters as his “other family.”
In the early 1960’s, Don worked both on Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne painting Atlas Missile underground storage silos and on Lowry AFB in Denver painting the Titan I Missile silos. The logistics of painting those 160-foot deep and 55-foot diameter structures housing the missiles, part of America’s nuclear deterrent program in place during the Cold War, were daunting, but Don thrived in that job. He later moved to Denver where he worked for Avis Rent-A-Car as a Sales Rep, leading to numerous visits to Loveland to call on Hewlett-Packard. He recalled lunch meetings at The Black Steer where it was so dark he couldn’t read the menu in those days, but said the steaks and burgers were the best. Included in his job duties was driving a Plymouth Fury to pick up celebrities at Stapleton Airport who had flown in for various promotions, as well as transport them around Denver. His best stories were of meeting Rock Hudson, Robert Goulet, Chill Wills, and a young Clint Eastwood. When Don told Eastwood how much his roommate loved his Italian Western films, watching them wherever he could find them, Eastwood replied, “No s*** ?!”
During this time, Don met his wife, Marilyn (Baird); they married in Denver in 1968 and immediately moved to Colorado Springs where Don sold real estate, opened his own company, built homes, his first one featured in a Parade of Homes; he also built and operated a restaurant, The Rathskeller. Christopher Scot, their son, was born in 1972, and Don and Marilyn decided to relocate to Grand Junction. Returning to the Eastern Slope to be near Don’s family, they lived in Greeley, where their daughter, Stephanie Carol, was born in 1975, and finally settled in Loveland that same year. Don founded D.E. Burns Construction Co., building homes and professional buildings all around Loveland, as well as in Fort Collins, Kersey, Greeley, Wellington, and Windsor, right up through 2018, when his health forced his retirement. Through the years, Don’s trademark was his insistence upon building a sound, solid home for his customers in a timely fashion; to this end, he worked alongside his employees and subcontractors every day. We always said if Don had been around, Rome would have been built in a day.
Don had two particular joys: one was providing for anyone he discovered had a need, always quietly, behind the scenes. His other great joy was his family, and the four of them enjoyed ski trips, Disneyland, Sea World, and many weekends on their small Wyoming farm with Don’s parents throughout Chris and Stephanie’s growing-up years. Don was very proud of and loved his “in-law kids,” Tiffany Burns and Brian Snell, and when the grandkids arrived, he quickly fell forever in love.
In the mid-90’s, family reunions with Don’s many cousins and their families in Las Vegas became an annual event. For 15 years, Bible Studies in one of Bally’s Towers coexisted with casino fun up and down the Strip, making myriad memories for three generations of Kerns/Burns progeny.
Don knew Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior from a very young age, and held a firm faith as to his next destination when he learned of the nature of his disease. He left this life with resolve and great courage, though worried and caring to the end about each one of us.
Don was preceded in death by his parents, Ed and Elsie Burns, brother, Ronald Burns, sister-in-law, Beverly Burns, brother-in-law, Ralph Baird, and sister-in-law, Carol Baird; lifelong friends and Christian mentors, Pastor Stuart and Marilyn Cook, and numerous others whose lives were lovingly intertwined with Don’s from Wyoming to New Mexico, Nevada, California, and Colorado.
Don is survived by his wife of 53 years, Marilyn, son Christopher Burns (Tiffany), grandchildren Hudson and Harper Burns all of Fort Collins; daughter Stephanie Snell (Brian), grandchildren Austin and Carson Snell all of Loveland; nephew Ross Burns (Jennifer) of Wheatland, WY, their children Ashley Burns of Gillette, Jacob Burns of Laramie; niece Renee McKain (Dale), Wheatland, and nephew Travis Burns (Kelli), of Burns; their children, as well as many relatives. Don loved his lifelong friends John Hewitt, Larry Garcia, and Everett Roberts as brothers.
Don requested no services, but the family will hold an Open House to celebrate Don’s life at a later date. In lieu of flowers, if you wish to make a donation, Don’s favorite charities were Tunnel To Towers Foundation, and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
