Marcia Burnam

1928 - 2020

Marcia Burnam 1928-2020, died April 1st of COVID-19 at her home in Los Angeles. An extraordinary woman of dignity, intelligence, generosity, kindness and personal courage, hers was a productive, fruitful life of helping countless people and many organizations. She knew how to run a meeting. Passionate about justice, interfaith and interracial understanding, in the 1960s she headed the Portraits of American Women panel. Serving as Western Regional President and then National Vice-President capped three decades of dedication to the American Jewish Committee. She also served on the national board of overseers of Hebrew Union College where she mentored many students at the School of Jewish Communal Service. She was a groundbreaking leader in interreligious affairs, working closely with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles over several decades and was an outspoken voice against domestic violence. She was determined to make a difference. She was particularly proud of the work of her son, Dr. Tewodros Gedebou, who built and heads in her honor a state-of-the-art reconstructive surgical hospital, The Marcia Surgical Center, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Marcia cherished lifelong friendships, was profoundly devoted to her family, and delighted in the accomplishments of her grandchildren. She leaves behind her daughter Beth (Monte Tomerlin), son Bruce (Hope), son Tewodros Gedebou (Yewlsew) and seven grandchildren: Michael Burnam Fink (Emily Schach), Dick Fink (Natalie Karic), Henry, Rose, Alexander and Edwin Burnam, Lilian Gedebou, her half-brother Emanuel Joel (Noelle) and nieces Harriet Hailparn Soares and Deborah Gunther, all who hold her memory dear. Her family is deeply grateful to those who cared for her in the last years of her life.