Jack D. Burner

Jack Burner, 92, of Lemont, Illinois cast his last line into the teeming lake of life on February 24, 2025.  He was predeceased by his devoted wife of 66 years, Leona.  He is survived by his daughter Susan (husband Jim Kaput); son Alan; six extraordinary grandchildren: Christiaan (Heather), Kiri, Nathaniel (Anna), Ryan, Claire, and John; two great grandchildren: James and Ellis; his sister Jayne Ritchie and 13 nieces and nephews.

Jack was born December 2, 1932, to Stanley and Mary Burner in Brookfield, Illinois, then a town of open spaces and farms.  Jack had no problem getting into all kinds of mischief in his youth.  He graduated from Argo High School in 1950 where he participated in track and theatre.  He then began a 45-year career with Corn Products Company, first as an apprentice blacksmith and eventually retired as a utilities manager.  Jack answered the call of our country and served in the US Army Occupation Forces in Germany from 1954 until 1956.

Jack and Leona met in 1951 at Lake Lawn Lodge in Wisconsin while on vacation.  Despite many ups and downs during the intervening years, they were united in Holy Matrimony on September 22, 1957.  In 1959, they purchased their first home in Bellwood, Illinois and during their 18 years there they made many lifelong friendships with neighbors and McKinley School parents.  In 1977, they built a home in Lemont, finishing it days before a tornado destroyed the high school and large parts of the town.   

Jack was a passionate fisherman, an often suffering but diehard Cubs fan, and well-known stamp collector and trader.   He and Leona enjoyed travelling and visiting five continents. He enjoyed many simple pleasures such as using his computer, reading novels and the daily newspaper, feeding birds and squirrels, watching Clint Eastwood and any war themed movies, exercising at the Core, eating Leona’s unparalleled baked goods, and playing Yahtzee.  Most of all he enjoyed time with family, especially attending special events in the lives of his grandchildren.

Jack had a quick wit and loved a good joke.  He was frugal and often frustratingly stubborn, but he was fiercely independent and proudly debt-free.  He never hesitated to help someone in need, whether with his time or sharing his knowledge of how things worked. Jack was not a religious man, but he was a model of honesty, integrity, hard work, and devotion to family and friends.  

Visitation will be held at Markiewicz Funeral Home, Lemont on Friday, March 7, from 9:30 until 11:00 a.m. with a military ceremony at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery to follow.  Family and friends are invited to a gathering and luncheon at Susan’s home in Morris after the ceremony.  In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations in Jack’s name be made to Shriner’s Children’s Hospital, Tunnels to Towers Foundation, or Honor Flight Chicago.