John Thomas Burke

  The extraordinary life of John Thomas Burke was tragically ended on September 2, 2022 at the age of 42. John was an outgoing, playful, and gregarious man who was loved and admired by all who knew him. He was a leader, protector, provider, and an inquisitive problem-solver; a guy who rarely encountered a question he couldn’t find the answer to. Above all, he was a helper, a caretaker, and a best friend who was fiercely devoted to his wife and three young children.

  John was born to John and Michele Burke on June 5, 1980 in East Grand Rapids, MI, and the family settled several years later in Burlington, WA. John was always the ring-leading big brother with big ideas, spending countless hours directing and coming up with activities with his younger brother and sister and neighborhood friends. Many of his fondest memories came from his family’s annual summer visits to Muskrat Lake, Michigan to see his father’s side of the family, and spending time on Hood Canal while enjoying his mother’s parent's burger stand, The Honey Bee. He graduated from Burlington-Edison High School in 1998 and received his BA from Pacific Lutheran University in 2002, with a double major in Political Science and Psychology. During his college years, John interned for the Washington State Senate in Olympia, and spent part of a summer on the crew of a catamaran in the Caribbean, where one of his proudest moments was walking barefoot up the 1,064 Saba steps of the Mt. Scenery Trail on St. John’s. John went on to pursue his law degree at Gonzaga University from 2003-2006. He later became a member of the United States Supreme Court Bar and had the opportunity to visit the Supreme Court Library in Washington, D.C.

  On July 3, 2004, a day after returning from six weeks of studying in Florence, Italy, John met his future wife Heidi at a barbecue held at his family’s home on Big Lake. John and Heidi quickly became each other’s favorite. They married on August 12, 2007 and went on to have three amazing children, Johnny (age 11), Tessa (age 8), and Eric (age 6). Several months after getting married, John received news that he had won a drawing from the World Brewing Academy; he had the opportunity to attend and graduate from a 2-week brewing course at the Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago.

  John began his legal career in 2007 as an associate under the late Elliott Johnson, who was a teacher, mentor, and inspiration to John in his early days as a lawyer. From 2010 to 2019 John continued working in estate planning, probate and real property, where he was able to use his passion for people by helping, caring, and interacting with community members, many of whom later became friends. After serving on the Skagit County Board of Equalization, John knew working for the county was a goal. In 2019, he was hired as a deputy prosecutor for the civil division of the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. John thoroughly enjoyed representing the many different departments he served and felt he had truly found his niche as a member of the county government community - the team he had been looking for all along.

  John was a lifelong collector and hobbyist, juggling and rotating through his many and ever-growing interests. He loved model trains, home brewing and beer, cars (particularly of the British variety, or the ‘66 silver blue Mustang he fixed up in high school), wine, soccer and World Cup viewing, historical firearms, antiquing, playing with his children, finding treasures and junk at garage sales and scrap yards, cyclekarts, and was becoming quite the whisky connoisseur. The next time you’re at a pub, raise a glass of scotch or a pint of your favorite brew in his honor.

  Whether building an epic backyard tree fort from found materials, chatting with his oldest son about their shared passion for all things Star Wars, relishing in garage projects with his daughter, playing card games with his youngest son, spending endless hours building Lego with his children, or going on an epic and long-awaited trip to Disneyland in June, 2022, John’s greatest joy and delight was being with his wife and kids.

  John is survived by his wife of 15 years Heidi and his dear children John Thomas, Tessa Jo, and Eric Ford, his parents Dr. John Burke and Michele Burke, siblings Drs. Richard (Laura) Burke and Drs. Sarah (David) Lewis, in-laws Sandra Kuttel and Ryan and Anna Kuttel, and many more loving aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, colleagues and friends.

  He is preceded in death by grandparents Dr. John and Jean Burke and Richard and Viola Honeysett, and father-in-law Joseph Kuttel.

  A memorial service for John will be held Friday, October 21st at 1:00 pm at Mt. Vernon Presbyterian Church, 1511 E. Broadway, Mount Vernon. Memorials may be made in John’s name to Burlington-Edison Alumni Foundation (burlingtonedison.dollarsforscholars.org) where he was a member and past president, or to Seattle Children’s Hospital (give.seattlechildrens.org) a foundation that was near and dear to his heart.

  Please visit www.hawthornefh.com to share your thoughts and memories and sign the online guest register.

  Arrangements are under the care of Hawthorne Funeral Home, Mount Vernon, WA.