[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 16 (Tuesday, February 10, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S788]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN MEMORIAM OF JOHN ``JACK'' BURRIS

 Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, I would like to set aside a moment 
to reflect on the life of Mr. John ``Jack'' Burris upon his passing 
late last month. Jack was a good friend and a man who made remarkable 
contributions to our State. He was a truly selfless man with a kind 
heart, diverse interests, great abilities and boundless energy.
  Jack was born in Lincoln City, now part of Milford, DE, to the late 
John W. and Edna Vaughn Burris. After graduating from the Peddie School 
in Hightstown, NJ in 1938, he went on to study at the University of 
Pennsylvania in 1942.
  After serving his country in World War II as a member of the United 
States Marine Corps, Jack returned to Delaware and began farming for 
several years. He then founded the Burris Poultry Business, which 
operated from 1948 until it was sold in 1971, at which time he founded 
Burris Logistics, a frozen-food warehousing and distribution company, 
which he ran until last year.
  Jack was an uncommonly active member of his community, serving on 
countless boards and committees. He was a member of the Executive 
Committee of the Wilmington Trust Co. and was chairman of its Kent 
County Advisory Board. For 19 years, Jack was director of the 
Brandywine Fund. He contributed generously of his time and energies to 
community, educational and service organizations.
  For 35 years, he served on the Milford Memorial Hospital Board. 
During a portion of that time, he was the board's chairman. More 
recently, Jack was a member of the Bayhealth Foundation board. Annually 
for 37 years, he and his family cooked the chicken dinners for the 
Milford Hospital Fair to help support the community's hospital. For 19 
years, he served as chairman of the State Integrity Commission and in 
2000, he co-chaired--at my request--the committee that raised funds to 
remodel the State Archives Building and transform in into a state-of-
the-art facility.
  One of Jack's greatest joys, however, was supporting the efforts of 
the United Way in our State. For more than 20 years, he actively 
participated in Kent and Sussex Counties' United Way campaigns, serving 
as chairman for many years. Jack and his wife, Lillian, were honored as 
exceptional volunteers, receiving the United Way's Alexis de 
Tocqueville Society Award. He was also a charter member of the Milford 
Lions Club.
  From 1976 to 1992, Jack was a trustee of the University of Delaware 
and co-chair of the search committee that recommended Dr. David Roselle 
as president. In 1992, he received a Doctor of Humane Letters from the 
University of Delaware and also served that same year on the 
Agriculture Advisory Committee of the University of Delaware Board of 
Trustees, as well as a trustees emeritus.
  For more than 30 years, he was an active member of the Avenue United 
Methodist Church in Milford, where he served on the administrative 
board and was the Pastor-Parish Committee chairman for 18 years.
  In 1998, Jack was inducted into the National Frozen Food Industries 
Hall of Fame. The Baltimore and Washington Frozen Food Association in 
1993 and 1994 honored him as Man of the Year. He was inducted into the 
Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame and twice, with his wife, 
Lillian Marshall Burris, was named as Outstanding Citizen of the Year 
by the Milford Chamber of Commerce. One of his greatest honors was 
receiving the Josiah Marvel Cup award from the Delaware State Chamber 
of Commerce in 1993.
  Jack Burris also has received many prestigious awards for his 
dedication and service. Among them are the Dover Colonial Rotary's Paul 
Harris Service Award, the Lions International Melvin Jones Award for 
Dedicated Humanitarian Services, the Delmarva Poultry Citizen of the 
Year and Del-Mar-Va Boy Scout Council's Citizen of the Year.
  Jack leaves behind his wife of 61 years Lillian, a remarkable woman 
in her own right, as well as four children, twelve grandchildren, three 
step-grandchildren, and twelve great-grandchildren. He also leaves 
behind a legion of friends, colleagues and several generations of 
Delawareans who are living more fulfilling, satisfying lives today 
because of Jack's extraordinary contributions.
  Jack Burris' legacy will live on in the lives of those he helped to 
shape and in the hearts of those who were lucky enough to call him 
their friend. I rise today to commemorate Jack's life, to celebrate his 
life, and to offer his family our heartfelt thanks for sharing this 
remarkable human being with all of us. Jack embodied the best of 
Delaware. He was one of a kind. He will be sorely missed.

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