Doris Burn

Please join us in gratitude for the life and legacy of Doris (Doe) Burn, noted author and illustrator of children's books, beloved matriarch, and inspiring role model. Doe was born in Portland, OR, April 24, 1923. Her father, Lage Wernstedt, worked for the U.S. Forest Service based in Portland. Her mother, Adele (Dotty) Wernstedt Graham, lived over fifty years on Guemes Island, near Anacortes. Lage was a pioneer mountaineer. Doe's fondest memories included a summer camping in the Cascades, the precursor of a lifetime love of nature and enthusiasm for adventuring. When Lage was stationed in the Mount Baker region, he was interviewed by June Burn for her column in the Bellingham Herald, which began a lifelong co-mingling with the Burn family. The Wernstedts bought land near the Burns and Chevaliers on Waldron Island and built a summer cabin. From Portland they drove to Bellingham, spent the night in the hotel across from the Leopold, and caught the Chickawana, the boat that delivered mail and freight to the San Juan Islands. For Doe the aromas of wild roses and salt water became the scent of home. Doris Wernstedt and South (Bob) Burn were married at the end of World War II. They made their home on Waldron Island. Bob and Doe separated, but remained close friends and neighbors throughout their lives. Doe is survived by her brother Fredrick Wernstedt, her children: Skye Burn, Mark Burn, Cameron Burn, and Lisa Burn, 15 grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren. Skye and Lisa reside in Bellingham, Mark in Port Townsend, and Cameron in DRC, Africa. Doris Burn's first book Andrew Henry's Meadow, published in 1965, won the Washington Governor's Art Award. Doe wrote and/or illustrated eleven books, including The Summerfolk, When I First Came to this Land (based on a song by Oscar Brand), We Were Tired of Living in a House (by Skorpen), and Christina Katerina & the Box (by Gauch). The Tale of Lazy Lizard Canyon, her final book, was published in 1976. Andrew Henry's Meadow is still in print (San Juan Publishing). Also Philomel Books, a division of Penguin Group, will soon publish a new edition. Illustrating books for children was a dream Doe manifested with passion, persistence, and courage. In 1956, Doe took her portfolio to publishers in New York City. She received enough encouragement to keep her dream alive through tough but wonderful years raising four children mostly on her own on Waldron, in a log cabin without electricity or running water. She provided such a rich life for her children they did not know they were poor. Her children remember Doe working late into the nights, drawing by kerosene lamplight with the fireplace fire crackling in the background. Doe's legacy includes a way of looking at life that emphasizes creativity, independence, and the importance of following dreams and never speaking ill of others. Doe is remembered for the sparkle in her clear blue eyes, her love of art and literature, playful zest, deep intellectual conversations and, in later years, her spiritual vision. Doe's Christian faith remained a core of her life until she died March 9, 2011. A favorite passage was Peter 1:19, "a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts". As death approached, Doe often said "Love is everything". Doe's memorial service will be 2:00 pm, Saturday, March 26th in the Leopold Ballroom, 1224 Cornwall Avenue, Bellingham, WA 98225. Memorial gifts can be made in her name to Waldron Island Community Library, PO Box 56, Waldron, WA 98297.