Funeral services and a Mass of Christian Burial for Patrick A. Burr, 71, a resident of Davenport and retired teacher for the Bettendorf School District, were held Wednesday, July 7, 2010, at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, Davenport. Burial was in Calvary Cemetery Ottumwa. Visitation with prayer service was Tuesday at the Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home, Davenport.
Mr. Burr died unexpectedly Friday, July 2, 2010, while doing what he loved, educating young minds. He was teaching College for Kids at Davenport West High School at the time of his passing.
Patrick Allen Burr was born March 17, 1939, in Strawberry Point, Iowa, a son of William Hubert and Mary Margaret (Keppler) Burr. He graduated from Loras College with a degree in philosophy. He had a 45-year career in education retiring from Bettendorf High School in 2005, after 43 years. He taught World History, AP European History, AP Philosophy and Latin at the high school, and had participated in the College for Kids program for over 20 years. A member of the inaugural class of recipients to receive the Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching, he was a highly respected and popular teacher, one of only two teachers in the state who taught sophomore AP classes.
He married Mary Jo Lynch on August 6, 1966, in Ottumwa. She preceded him in death Dec. 21, 1983.
Pat was a member of Our Lady of Victory Parish and had taught CCD classes for the church; a member of and past state chairman of the Iowa Junior Classical League; and a lifetime member of the National Education Association. He had a voracious appetite for knowledge and was an avid reader, having amassed an 8,000-volume library at his home.
Memorials can be made to the Patrick A. Burr Scholarship Fund for a future scholarship to be established in his name.
Survivors include children and their spouses, Patrick and Jolinda Burr, DeWitt; Bonnie Shindoll, Irving, Texas; Robert “Bob” Burr, Davenport; and William “Billy” and Jenni Burr, Delta Junction, Alaska; three grandchildren, Stephen, Billy, and David, a great grandson, Kaden; brothers and sisters-in-law, Ronald and Kay Burr, Marshalltown; Roger and Sandy Burr, Strawberry Point; and Steve and Linda Burr, Manchester; numerous nieces and nephews.
In addition to his wife, he was also preceded in death by a son in infancy, Thomas in 1968, his parents, and a brother, Donald. May they rest in peace.
Online remembrances and condolences may be expressed to the family by visiting Pat’s obituary at www.hmdfuneralhome.com
